Humanity's Wisdom, Enlightenment by the Lake

Cold, high pressure, lack of oxygen.

Each of these alone was enough to cause death, yet all of them were currently pressing down on Li Changqing.

Water poured in madly through the collapsed section, forming a vortex with immense gravitational pull as it flowed at high speed. Li Changqing stood within it, every cell in his body trembling.

His body's oxygen had run out long ago.

Muscle cells could still rely on anaerobic respiration to consume glycogen and operate at a barely overloaded level.

However, his internal organs, heart, and even more critical nerve cells could not do the same.

For a normal person, consciousness would begin to blur after one minute of suffocation. Within three minutes, their internal organs would rapidly fail, their heart would become erratic, and it might even stop beating.

Exceeding six minutes would cause irreversible damage to nerve cells due to lack of oxygen, leading to brain disease in mild cases and instant death in severe ones.

Blood Essence could alleviate muscle fatigue, but it couldn't protect nerve cells.

At this moment, Li Changqing's Blood Essence was not depleted. Even though he had broken through his limits and gained Physique points.

No oxygen meant no oxygen.

A Martial Artist was not a Psionic User; they had not yet escaped the constraints of carbon-based life.

They could only endure longer than a normal person.

But if he couldn't solve the problem within ten minutes, he would be.

Absolutely doomed.

Suffocation was an extreme torture.

The sensation of his lungs feeling like they would explode, the pain of his brain tearing apart, coupled with the circulatory obstruction caused by his erratic heartbeat, was enough to drive someone mad with suffering.

And Li Changqing was not just a Martial Artist; his Listening to Strength was also at the Grandmaster level. His perception of every part of his body was tens of times stronger than that of an ordinary person.

Naturally, the pain he endured far surpassed that of an ordinary person suffocating.

At this moment, the bottom of the lake was filled with deadly undertows.

Li Changqing personally witnessed a black fish caught by an undertow. Without even a second of struggle, it was directly pulled into the collapsed opening, its fate unknown.

Three minutes later.

He still stood above the collapsed area, with less than a fifth of his Blood Essence remaining.

The most critical issue was that his brain's nerve cells were already sending out danger warnings.

The scene before his eyes began to blur; his optic nerves were starting to shut down due to insufficient supply.

Yet, there was not a trace of anxiety on Li Changqing's face, even though his fair skin had turned a purplish-red.

He still held his breath, concentrating his mind.

"Breathing, how to breathe?"

Mammalian respiration uses the nasal cavity, mouth, and respiratory tract to exchange gases through the lungs.

Li Changqing attempted to use his breathing technique. He first swallowed the cold lake water, using his Blood Essence to envelop it and guide it into his lungs.

The intense, uncomfortable sensation of rejection almost made him cough, but Li Changqing suppressed it with his formidable will.

Breathe!

The Universe Breathing Technique activated.

Ten seconds later, Li Changqing spat out the lake water, his face flushed red.

"No, the oxygen content in the lake water is too low. My lungs aren't gills; I can't exchange oxygen directly through water."

While he was contemplating, another minute passed.

Four minutes!

He was already approaching the dangerous red line.

Besides the lungs, were there other methods?

In this life-or-death moment, his body's protective measures were fully activated.

Li Changqing's mind raced.

Universe, it encompasses heaven and earth.

Heaven and earth, they encompass all things.

Since this breathing technique was named Universe Breathing.

How could heaven and earth, encompassing all things, only rely on lung respiration?

Countless sparks of inspiration flashed in Li Changqing's mind.

Boom!

Suddenly, his Blood Essence in his Dantian underwent Embracing the Core and Returning Strength, and the Yin-Yang Qi clashed.

All the Blood Essence within his body was forced by Li Changqing to his subcutaneous layer.

His pores opened, and hot steam erupted from every pore on his body.

At the bottom of the cold lake, a large amount of white airflow formed.

The waste gas, heated to boiling by his Blood Essence, was expelled from Li Changqing's body. The extreme temperature directly heated the lake water around him.

As the lake water warmed, a large number of fine bubbles gradually appeared.

Now!

Universe Breathing Technique!

Hoo—

Li Changqing's nostrils and lips remained tightly shut.

Instead, his entire body's pores opened and closed rhythmically as the breathing technique circulated.

Instantly, he absorbed the fine bubbles rising from the lake water around him into his body.

Cool and smooth.

This feeling was far superior to running a thousand miles in a scorching desert and chugging an ice-cold Sprite.

Even a long-awaited rain after a drought couldn't describe Li Changqing's exhilaration.

Oxygen!

Every cell in his body cheered in unison.

A large amount of oxygen entered his body, completely bypassing his lungs and being transported throughout his system by his Blood Essence.

His pores opened and closed, expelling carbon dioxide.

The solubility of oxygen decreased as the water temperature rose.

He used his Blood Essence to heat the lake water, causing it to release dissolved oxygen, which he then absorbed through his pores.

This was.

Human ingenuity!

Hoo—Breathe—

His pores opened and closed, and the expelled hot gas continued to heat the lake water, forcing out more oxygen.

The natural suction created by the swirling airflow drew the oxygen into his pores.

This was the true Universe Breathing Technique!

[Universe Breathing Technique (Heaven-Man Resonance), Proficiency: 75%]

Achieving enlightenment was the fastest way to increase proficiency.

In one go, the breathing technique's proficiency increased by a full 25%.

It wouldn't be long before he could push the Universe Breathing Technique's proficiency to 100%.

His entire body could breathe, no longer relying solely on his nostrils and lungs.

The surface area of human skin, when spread out, was about 2 square meters.

Breathing through his pores was far more efficient than natural respiration.

A large amount of oxygen surged into Li Changqing's body.

His cells were revitalized once more.

Boom!

Thunder rumbled, tigers roared in the mountains.

Tiger Roar Thunder Sound echoed through the turbulent lakebed once more.

Li Changqing assumed a Tai Chi stance, feeling the turbulent currents around him with his skin.

The next moment, his fist technique changed drastically.

He directly moved against the flow of the lakebed's vortex, performing his fist techniques in reverse.

Heaven-Man Resonance.

His strength surged in and out of the water, and a miniature vortex appeared within the larger vortex at the lakebed.

The two spun in completely opposite directions.

He intended to stir the natural world with human power.

Powerful forces roared at the lakebed, defying the natural great power, and the pressure on Li Changqing increased exponentially.

His will mobilized his Blood Essence, and his breathing technique operated frantically.

He pushed his strength to his entire body.

"Turn!"

Li Changqing swung his arms, Tai Chi evolving into Yin and Yang, creating a space within the vortex.

His Blood Essence was constantly being consumed, but it was rapidly replenished by the operation of the Universe Breathing Technique.

Back and forth, his Physique was repeatedly tempered.

[Physique +3]

[Vitality Concentration: 29%]

Peak Three-Star Martial Artist!

As new strength surged, Li Changqing seized the moment, spreading his arms.

"Again."

Immense power, evolved through Tai Chi, completely tore apart the churning vortex.

Li Changqing directly chose to expand the battlefield, pulling in even larger currents of water from further away.

The second the vortex expanded, the gravitational pull from the collapsing area drew in even more massive amounts of lake water.

The rift Li Changqing had painstakingly torn open was not only filled but, due to the immense pressure, began to push him towards the collapse.

He couldn't even stand his ground.

His recently recovered stamina was rapidly depleted, and his body was once again approaching its limit.

Immobile, as if surrounded by lead and mercury.

The roaring Blood Essence and the surging water combined, burning from within and crushing from without.

A peerless divine weapon was slowly taking shape.

Finally, under the tempering of both internal and external pressure.

Li Changqing's Blood Essence once again broke through its limit.

[Physique +3]

[Vitality Concentration: 33%]

BOOM!!!

Li Changqing completely shattered the barrier of a Three-Star Martial Artist.

His Blood Essence broke through the bottleneck, becoming increasingly solid with the Embracing the Core and Returning Strength technique, coiling within his Dantian, round and golden.

Resembling the Golden Core of myth.

Compared to before, he was now worlds apart.

A vortex?

With his feet planted firmly, his powerful Blood Essence stirred slightly, instantly resisting the lake's pressure.

Li Changqing raised his arms, Blood Essence surging through his body, propagating through his strength to agitate a wider area of the lake water.

"Open!"

His power erupted.

Li Changqing tore apart the vortex, standing directly in the collapsed area at the lakebed, pushing forward with his palms.

But this time, before the lake could mount a greater counterattack.

Li Changqing was one step ahead, lifting off the ground, suspending himself above the collapsed area.

"Rise!"

His powerful Blood Essence shot towards the heavens, his peerless strength truly holding back the deluge of lake water.

He stood proudly above the collapsed area, his hands performing Tai Chi, churning the lake water.

The vortex could no longer form. After his breakthrough, Li Changqing's power had surpassed the flowing water.

The water within the collapsed area rapidly flowed away, exposing the rocks, their surfaces gradually drying.

His formidable strength, like a tangible entity, formed an impenetrable wall within the collapsed lakebed.

Li Changqing, with human strength alone, had created a dry, water-free zone at the bottom of the forty-meter-deep lake, isolating it from the water's impact.

"Have I reached Four-Star?" Li Changqing sensed the seemingly infinite power within him.

Although the breakthrough was cause for celebration, he had a feeling.

The Universe Breathing Technique was like the engine of a supercar, and he hadn't yet reached its limit.

Four-Star was by no means the end.

Gazing at the collapse beneath him, Li Changqing's expression flickered.

He bent his knees slightly and leaped directly into the opening, standing in that fatal position.

The next instant.

He released the barrier of Blood Essence.

Instantly, the heavens and earth seemed to collapse, and vast amounts of lake water poured in.

The moment they made contact, immense force struck Li Changqing. His throat felt sweet, and he spat out a mouthful of blood like an arrow.