Quenching Veins Advancement

After practicing the sword for half an hour, Shen Hao only sheathed his blade when he felt the Spiritual Energy in his Sea of Qi had been depleted by nearly half. He returned to his room, closed the door to shut out the clamor of the outside world, and sat cross-legged on the crude wooden bed. From his bosom, he pulled out a yellowed ancient tome—the Meridian Tempering Art he had retrieved from the Scripture Repository.

The pages were already curled at the edges from being flipped through so often, yet the characters on them remained clear. After these days of arduous cultivation, the meridians in his limbs had undergone their initial tempering, becoming several times wider and tougher than before. When Spiritual Energy flowed through them, the sense of obstruction was greatly reduced. Now, what he had to tackle next were the more complex torso meridians.

The torso is the foundation of the human body, with meridians crisscrossing in all directions, connecting the limbs and bones to the dantian and Sea of Qi. Their importance went without saying. But precisely because of this, tempering the torso meridians was far more difficult than the limbs, and the pain endured increased exponentially.

Shen Hao took a deep breath, placed the Meridian Tempering Art on his knees, closed his eyes, and focused his mind inward. He saw that within his dantian's Sea of Qi, Spiritual Energy churned without cease, forming a pale blue torrent that slowly surged toward the torso meridians. Following the records of the Meridian Tempering Art, he carefully guided the energy, letting it seep bit by bit into the torso's meridian network.

The moment the Spiritual Energy entered the torso meridians, a piercing pain, like a tidal wave, instantly swept through his entire body. It felt as if countless sharp blades were churning and slicing within his meridians, causing him to shudder violently, his face turning as pale as paper.

Cold sweat dripped like beads from a broken string, sliding down his temples and soaking his clothes. Shen Hao's body trembled uncontrollably, his teeth clenched so hard they ground together, and a bloody mark appeared on his lip from biting down. Yet his gaze remained unwavering.

He knew this was an unavoidable part of tempering the meridians. Meridians were inherently fragile; only by repeatedly scouring and polishing them with Spiritual Energy could they be widened and strengthened. If he backed down now, all his previous efforts would be wasted.

Shen Hao endured the excruciating pain, firmly guarding his mind, and controlled the flow of Spiritual Energy without the slightest impatience. He split the energy into thin streams, slowly washing over the torso meridians. Each pass felt like a trip to the gates of death. Wave after wave of pain battered his nerves, blurring his consciousness.

He didn't know how long passed, but just as he was about to give out, Shen Hao bit the tip of his tongue. A strong, coppery taste of blood spread through his mouth, jolting him back to clarity. Gritting his teeth, he mustered all the remaining Spiritual Energy in his Sea of Qi and drove it with all his might toward the deepest part of the torso meridians.

Hum—

A faint, barely audible hum resonated within his body.

When the first thread of Spiritual Energy flowed smoothly through the torso meridians without any obstruction, an indescribable sense of relief instantly flooded his limbs and bones. It felt like parched earth receiving a sweet rain, or a taut bowstring suddenly slackening, and he couldn't help but let out a long, turbid breath.

Completely drained, Shen Hao collapsed onto the bed, gasping heavily. Sweat had soaked through his clothes, plastering them to his body, and all his strength seemed to have been sucked away. Yet a gratified smile spread across his face.

He focused inward again and saw that the torso meridians were now nearly half wider than before, their walls much tougher. Pale blue Spiritual Energy flowed through them without a hitch. The stabbing pain in his meridians, caused by his earlier rapid cultivation, had vanished without a trace.

"Excellent. The torso meridians are finally initially tempered," Shen Hao murmured to himself, his eyes brimming with joy.

He lay on the bed to rest for a while, and once his strength had somewhat recovered, he took out a Low-grade Spirit Stone from his bosom and carefully pressed it against the Companion Jade Pendant he wore close to his body.

A cyan light flickered, and the pendant emitted a faint glow. The Spirit Devouring Vortex in his dantian slowly began to spin. The Spiritual Energy within the stone, as if finding an outlet, poured endlessly into his body. After being purified by the pendant, it transformed into the purest Spiritual Energy, flowing along the newly tempered torso meridians and converging into his Sea of Qi.

This time, the circulation of Spiritual Energy was several times smoother than before, with not a hint of obstruction. Shen Hao could clearly sense that the Spiritual Energy in his Sea of Qi was growing denser and more refined at a visible rate. Under the nourishment of this energy, his cultivation base faintly showed signs of another breakthrough.