The Existence of Heaven and Earth Essence Qi

From the perspective of the naked eye, Lin Lin could see that there was nothing in Ji Yun's outstretched palm.

Yet through an abstruse intuitive sense, Lin Lin discovered that an invisible force was gathering within Ji Yun's palm.

This invisible force was completely different from True Qi and Inner Breath. At first, it flickered in and out of perception, making Lin Lin suspect that his intuition had gone wrong. But as time passed, more and more of this invisible force gathered, and Lin Lin could even see the air constantly rippling under its pressure.

Although this invisible force had yet to be unleashed, Lin Lin could sense within it a destructive power nothing short of world-shaking.

"This is Heaven and Earth Essence Qi, a type of free energy that exists widely throughout heaven and earth."

"It is a collective term for the essence of the heavens, such as the essence of the sun, moon, and stars, Nine Heavens Pure Qi, and the qi of wind and thunder. It also includes Earth Vein Primordial Qi, such as the baleful qi of the Nine Underworlds, frigid yin qi, and other such forces."

"Or, it can also be called Heaven and Earth Origin Qi."

"Experts above Super First-Rate are no longer opponents that numbers alone can handle. The primary reason is that after reaching this realm, they can actively draw upon Heaven and Earth Origin Qi with every gesture, using it to attack, defend, or restore their own Inner Breath. Their combat strength is utterly incomparable to that of martial artists below this level."

Perhaps noticing from Lin Lin's thoughtful expression that he could vaguely sense this power, Ji Yun began to explain.

After pausing to let Lin Lin digest the information, Ji Yun continued.

"The process of True Qi Condensation is not merely the elevation of your Inner Breath. It is also a martial artist's first encounter with, and integration into, heaven, earth, and nature."

"Even if your Mental Strength is insufficient to clearly perceive this Heaven and Earth Essence Qi, it is still an objectively existing force. After you achieve True Qi Condensation, it will interact with you through True Qi as a medium and merge into the circulation of your Essence, Qi, and Spirit."

"The reason a martial artist's combat strength increases so rapidly after True Qi Condensation is that, in the course of cultivation, they not only absorb power from food and medicine, but also gradually absorb a portion of Heaven and Earth Essence Qi."

"If the influence of Heaven and Earth Essence Qi is disregarded, it makes no difference whether you achieve True Qi Condensation first or open your acupoints first. But if its influence is taken into account, then naturally, opening as many acupoints as possible before breaking through to True Qi Condensation will yield greater benefits."

"If you can open all three hundred and sixty-five Major Celestial Acupoints throughout your body, along with as many Hidden Acupoints as possible, then when you break through to True Qi Condensation, you may undergo an additional Rebirth and Transformation. That would be enough to lay an unparalleled foundation for your breakthrough into the Heaven and Human Realm."

Lin Lin only understood half of Ji Yun's words.

Having never encountered a force like Heaven and Earth Essence Qi, Lin Lin had no direct understanding of it.

As for what the Heaven and Human Realm was, that lay even further beyond the limits of Lin Lin's knowledge.

What he currently knew of martial arts realms was only that after breaking through the fifth level of Qi Refining, Spirit Nourishing, one would enter the realm of Spirit Refinement.

As for how many levels the Spirit Refinement realm had, or what characteristics and manifestations it possessed, he knew nothing at all.

Even across the entire martial world, Spirit Refinement experts were Super First-Rate masters.

However, Lin Lin clearly understood Ji Yun's point that opening more acupoints before achieving True Qi Condensation would bring about his Rebirth and Transformation.

"Elder, does that mean that if I activate and open more acupoints before achieving True Qi Condensation, I will attain greater achievements in martial arts in the future?"

Lin Lin asked Ji Yun for confirmation.

Ji Yun nodded. Stroking his beard, he replied with a smile, "Theoretically, that is so. But before doing this, you must first consider your environment, the resources at your disposal, and whether your talent and aptitude can support you on this path."

Just as Ji Yun had said not long ago, the sect had always known that opening more acupoints before achieving True Qi Condensation was a better path for martial cultivation.

But not everyone was qualified to walk this path.

In this chaotic world, only those who survived had the right to speak of whether they possessed a brighter future.

Lin Lin began to consider whether he should embark on this path.

"My current cultivation resources are fairly sufficient. The income from working at the Cold Iron Mine, together with my family's support, means I need not worry about money for the time being. And working at the Cold Iron Mine will not expose me to overly dangerous battles, so I still have enough time to consolidate my foundation."

"With my talent and aptitude, activating and opening all three hundred and sixty-five Heavenly Cycle Acupoints, along with some Hidden Acupoints, would take at most two or three years."

"Spending that time to strive for a brighter future is worthwhile."

"The only difficulty now is that I do not possess enough methods for nourishing and opening acupoints."

Among the martial arts Lin Lin had already mastered, only one hundred and forty-nine acupoints were involved in their opening and cultivation. Even adding the extra thirty-four acupoints included in the Hundred Flowers True Qi that he had yet to formally begin cultivating, he only possessed methods for nourishing and cultivating a total of one hundred and eighty-three acupoints.

If he wanted to open all three hundred and sixty-five Heavenly Cycle Acupoints throughout his body, as well as some Hidden Acupoints, he would need to research and develop the nourishing methods himself. There was no telling how much time that would take.

Perhaps by the time Lin Lin truly achieved the feat of opening all the acupoints in his body, more than a decade would already have passed.

With more than a decade of time, normal cultivation would have made him an unknown level of master already. He might even have surpassed the Heaven and Human Realm Elder Ji Yun had mentioned.

Just as he was conflicted, Lin Lin saw Ji Yun looking at him with a gentle, smiling expression.

A flash of inspiration immediately struck him.

If Ji Yun had not wanted him to take this path in pursuit of a powerful foundation, there would have been no need for him to tell Lin Lin so much from the beginning. He could have simply said that achieving True Qi Condensation first was better than opening acupoints first.

But since he had said it, that meant he had some expectations for Lin Lin.

"This disciple wishes to pursue the pinnacle of the martial path. Elder, please teach me!"

Lin Lin clasped his hands and bowed.

"A teachable child indeed. Since you have such aspirations, this old man has a copy of the Hundred Flowers Secret Records, which contains methods for cultivating and nourishing the Heavenly Cycle Acupoints and many Hidden Acupoints. I can grant it to you."

Ji Yun seemed to have been waiting for Lin Lin to speak. The moment he finished, Ji Yun raised a hand and drew a jade book over from the loft.

The jade book bore an exceptionally comprehensive diagram of the human body's meridians. Beside it were dense annotations written in the secret language of Hundred Flowers Valley.

"This was compiled by the many sages of our Hundred Flowers Valley. Some methods were self-created, while others were gathered from throughout the martial world. They assembled the essence of all knowledge concerning acupoint cultivation, and only then did this Hundred Flowers Secret Records come into being. If disciples of the sect wish to cultivate it, not only must they possess excellent talent, but they must also have three hundred thousand points of Sect Contribution."

"Lin Lin, are you willing to cultivate this secret manual?"

Before handing the jade book to Lin Lin, Ji Yun asked one final time with a smile.