Foundation Establishment and Heart Refining
After dinner, all the spectators gathered in front of the ring, eagerly awaiting the Semi-Finals.
"The exciting moment is about to arrive!" Lin Xiaomo, still brimming with energy, took the stage to introduce, "After three days of competition, we have finally reached the Semi-Finals! These four are all top-tier First-class Expert have emerged from numerous challengers through rounds of competition! They are..."
"From the East Sea Dragon Palace, the seventh Princess of Dragon Mother Ao Zhen, one of the Three Wonders, is Azure Sea Jade Flute, Ao Yunzhi!"
"From the Sword Saint Sect, one of the Four Saints, the personal disciple of Sword Saint Zuo Taixuan, the Cloud -Cloud Piercing Sword, Duan Feibai!"
"From Heaven's Gate, the most mysterious disciple of the Heaven's Gate Sect Master, Qi Feng, the Moon Averting Iron Fan!"
"And there's also Lei Tianyang, a rising star from the Hundred Rivers Sect, who is proficient in a unique Lightning Control technique!"
"These four are all outstanding Young Talent, but unfortunately, our Medicine King Valley has a limited stock of First Grade Spirit Gathering Gu, with only three left. Therefore, the four experts will still have to compete to determine the final first, second, and third place... Of course, even if you don't perform well and get fourth place, the valley will still give you a gift as a souvenir!"
"Alright, enough chit-chat, I'm sure everyone's getting impatient!" Lin Xiaomo changed the subject. "Then let's welcome Ao Yunzhi and Duan Feibai from the first match to compete for the first spot in the finals!"
As the host introduced them, Ao Yunzhi and Duan Feibai jumped onto the ring, exchanged greetings with clasped hands, and began their duel.
"For example, the Elemental School transform their qi into elements like wind, fire, thunder, and lightning; the Spell Faction transform their qi into the power of Curse or blessings; and the Creation Faction directly turn their qi into tangible objects... No matter what it is, it has all undergone a transformation before it can be used."
Luo Jun was somewhat surprised. In his impression, the Martial Combat Faction was like an enhanced version of the Foundation Establishment Realm, with the strongest Qi, but a limited attack range, and was more adept at close combat. This kind of ranged combat was generally only seen in battles between the Elemental School or the Manipulation School!
"The Martial Combat Faction is not simply about close combat; its essence lies in the ultimate application of internal energy," Tie Jingang explained. "Apart from the Martial Combat Faction, other schools transform internal energy into other things."
Are those two really Martial Combat Faction?
"But the Martial Combat Faction is different. The Martial Combat Faction fights using the purest formless and intangible energy, which has no attributes! There is no loss from conversion, so its utilization rate is the highest. But it is precisely because the characteristics of the formless energy are too singular and too limited that it is difficult to maintain and control when it is too far away from the body, which gives people the impression that the Martial Combat Faction can only fight in close combat."
Tie Jingang nodded. "[The Martial World] is a world of Martial Combat Faction. The masters here have studied Qi for over a thousand years, possessing a much deeper foundation than us. They have also mastered many exquisite techniques, and because of the characteristics of this world, these techniques have been passed down and developed. Therefore, the masters in [The Martial World] have a much deeper understanding of Qi than the Martial Combat Faction in the Main World, and can perform many incredible feats."
As expected of top-tier masters in the martial arts world, one side was gracefully dancing with long sleeves and transmitting sound through a jade flute, while the other side was elegantly moving with Sword Qi Crisscross. The two rarely even made direct contact, relying solely on sound waves and Sword Qi to exchange blows from a distance, leaving the arena made of Ocean Crossing Wood with numerous scratches.
"But conversely, if you have a way to make your internal energy retain a certain degree of lethality after it leaves your body, then Martial Combat Faction are not necessarily unable to fight at a distance."
Luo Jun nodded thoughtfully. "So these two, whether it's Sonic Power or Sword Qi, are essentially using internal energy to fight?"
"For example, Sonic Power may seem to use internal force to make sound waves lethal, but in essence, they cleverly transmit internal energy through sound waves. Sword Qi is the same; it relies on sharp Swordsmanship techniques to shoot out internal energy at extremely high speeds. Although it can only be maintained for a moment, as long as it can travel far enough in that moment, it greatly increases the attack range..."
"These are all very advanced techniques. Cultivators in our Main World have also learned a lot from them and are constantly improving."
Luo Jun nodded, then asked, "Then, Martial Uncle, if the essence of the Martial Combat Faction is to fight directly using internal energy... then since those in the Foundation Establishment Realm also possess internal energy, can they also perform these techniques?"
Tie Jingang was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, then shook his head and smiled, "You're very clever. Others have thought of this problem before, but all of them failed after trying."
"Although they look similar, there is a fundamental difference between the Foundation Establishment Realm and the Heart Refining Realm. The Qi Cultivation Realm cultivates the quality of Qi, while the Mind Condensation cultivates the skills of using Qi; they are two different dimensions."
"My teacher once gave me an example: if Qi is gunpowder, then the Foundation Establishment Realm is simply igniting the gunpowder. It has destructive power, but it only utilizes the inherent properties of gunpowder without any application skills."
"But Heart Refining Realm is like building a gun; you can use gunpowder to fire bullets and target specific enemies. That's the fundamental difference!"
"Without a gun, even if you have a whole barrel of gunpowder, the explosion will only cover a radius of a few dozen meters at most; but if you load it into a gun barrel, even just a small amount can send the bullet flying hundreds of meters."
"The same applies to vital energy. No matter how solid the foundation for Foundation Establishment energy is, without the understanding of vital energy through the Heart Refining Realm, it will be difficult to achieve the desired effect."
"I understand..." Luo Jun nodded, then asked, "What if... there was a mountain of gunpowder? What if it exploded and turned everything within a few hundred meters into scorched earth?"
Tie Jingang was taken aback for a moment, then angrily retorted, "Are you trying to argue with me? Who could possibly have that much internal energy?"
"I was just asking..." Luo Jun said with a grin.
As they spoke, the two on the arena had already decided their match. In the end, Ao Yunzhi Duan Feibai's longsword and suffered a bitter defeat.
Thunderous applause erupted from the audience. Most of those present were Martial World practitioners, who could tell the level of the competition was extremely high. The applause was not only an acknowledgment of the contestants but also a way of thanking them for presenting such a wonderful duel.
However, due to the severe damage to the field, which requires time for repairs, the next match will be postponed slightly.
Taking advantage of this time, Lei Tianyang began his final rest and recuperation, and his classmates cheered him on. Although few people believed he could defeat Qi Feng, he at least wanted to display the spirit of the Hundred Rivers Sect!
Just then, Luo Jun suddenly caught sight of a figure outside the crowd, who looked somewhat familiar.
She looked like an ordinary woman, in her forties, with a sallow complexion and dressed in coarse cloth. She didn't even seem like a Martial World practitioner... But for some reason, Luo Jun had a feeling of familiarity, as if he had seen her not long ago, and not just a stranger, but someone he had interacted with—someone quite important...
Who does he look a bit like?
Luo Jun stared at the woman, deep in thought. She seemed to notice him too, and turned to leave.
She ran away? She knows me too!!
Convinced that the other party was no ordinary person, Luo Jun greeted Tie Jingang, squeezed out of the crowd, and chased after the woman in the direction she had left.
(End of this chapter)