Xiantian

In meditation, his mind became empty and clear.

At this moment, Lin Heng began his first Internal Cultivation practice.

Under the normal steps of Internal Cultivation, one first tempered the Physique through External Martial Arts to strengthen one's blood and qi, thereby developing Qi Sense.

Then one would Condense Internal Breath and accumulate internal force, warming and opening the Meridians throughout the body. This completed the cultivation of the entire Postnatal Realm. Afterward, one could Condense the spirit, perceive Heaven and Earth Nature, draw upon the Power of Heaven and Earth to cleanse oneself, and thus enter the Xiantian Realm.

But Lin Heng was different. He had Innate All Meridians Open, so he did not need to undergo the tempering of the Postnatal Realm.

Following the cultivation method Xiao Rang had explained orally, he calmed his mind and steadied his qi. After successfully Condensing Internal Breath within his Dantian Qi Sea, he directly used his mind to perceive Heaven and Earth Nature.

The Dragon Tiger Golden Core regulated the Yin-Yang Five Elements, allowing the Human Body to achieve the effect of Primordial Chaos Qi. At this moment, it showed its use, and Lin Heng easily entered the state of Spirit Merging with Heaven and Earth.

Before long, he sensed the Heaven and Earth Origin Energy surrounding his body, shimmering in Five-Colored hues.

Then, Lin Heng guided qi with his intent, mobilizing the Internal Breath within his Dantian Qi Sea and circulating it through his bodily Meridians along a complex and profound route in a Great Circulation.

That newly born, faint strand of Internal Breath continuously refined essence into qi, gathering and strengthening the body's blood and qi.

At the same time, as Lin Heng cultivated, the origin energy between heaven and earth gathered in wisps from his limbs and Baihui point, merging into his Internal Breath. It also nourished Lin Heng's body, leaving him feeling Refreshed and Clear-Headed.

Cultivating the Postnatal Realm through Refining Essence into Qi greatly depleted one's blood and qi. Thus, after practicing Internal Cultivation once, Martial Artists often felt utterly exhausted. Without sufficient medicinal herbs to replenish their blood and qi, relying on food alone meant they had to rest several days before practicing Internal Cultivation again.

There was no such thing as becoming more energetic the more one cultivated, nor would one's cultivation progress quickly.

But Lin Heng was different. With Innate All Meridians Open, he cultivated directly by borrowing the Power of Heaven and Earth.

Not only did the cultivation process not deplete his own blood and qi, it instead allowed the Heaven and Earth Origin Energy to nourish his Essence, Qi, and Spirit. Thus, the more he cultivated, the more energetic he felt.

After one Great Circulation was complete, the qi settled within his dantian, finally transforming into a strand of pure white Internal Breath. It was as ethereal as drifting clouds and mist, yet carried a trace of sharpness.

This strand of Internal Breath was exceedingly powerful. It did not resemble something that had just been cultivated, but rather the result of dozens of Great Circulations' worth of accumulation.

"Not bad. You've directly cultivated Xiantian Internal Breath, and accumulating cultivation through the Power of Heaven and Earth is very fast—dozens of times faster than ordinary people."

"If you continue cultivating like this, you will become a true Xiantian Expert in at most a year."

Lin Heng awakened from meditation and looked inward at the state of his Dantian Qi Sea, his heart filled with joy.

He now possessed Xiantian Internal Breath and could use Internal Force External Release to injure enemies, which counted as entering the Xiantian Realm. But because his cultivation was weak, he could be considered the weakest Xiantian Realm Martial Artist in history.

Of course, this was not much of a problem. His cultivation speed was very fast, and in at most a year, he would accumulate enough cultivation to rival an ordinary Xiantian Expert.

During that year of accumulating cultivation, if he practiced a few more External Martial Arts, he would become a genuine Xiantian Martial Artist with the Combat Power to face a thousand riders alone.

"How was it?"

Seeing Lin Heng open his eyes, Xiao Rang, who had been guarding him throughout his cultivation, spoke.

"I succeeded."

Lin Heng answered with a smile.

"Good, very good."

Xiao Rang examined Lin Heng's Qi Meridians, then nodded with a smile.

From the results of Lin Heng's first cultivation session, he had reached the same conclusion as Lin Heng: in at most a year, his disciple would become a genuine Xiantian Expert.

A year from now, his disciple would not even be seven years old.

Such a young Xiantian Expert was destined to become a Great Grandmaster in the future, perhaps even with hopes of reaching the Heaven-Human Realm.

Though these matters had been anticipated before, seeing them gradually turn from expectation into reality still filled him with immense excitement and joy.

"Disciple, cultivate well. A year from now, your master will hold a Master Acknowledgment Ceremony for you."

"At that time, we can also let the fellow practitioners of the Jianghu know your great name."

Xiao Rang spoke with a smile.

He had been holding back from conducting this Master Acknowledgment Ceremony precisely for this moment.

If an ordinary small faction had such a genius, what they needed to do was keep a low profile and hide them away tightly, only allowing them to appear once they had become a true expert.

But Cloud Sword Palace was different. As a Martial Arts Holy Land renowned throughout the Jianghu, they had enough strength to protect their disciples.

A seven-year-old Xiantian Expert—with such a bright future visible to the naked eye—would let everyone know that Cloud Sword Palace was not merely powerful now. Its future prospects were even more boundless.

"I will leave everything to Master's arrangements."

Lin Heng replied.

His master, Xiao Rang, had invested a great deal of Cultivation Resources in him without expecting anything in return. If he wished to gain some Emotional Value from this Master Acknowledgment Ceremony, that was naturally entirely reasonable. Lin Heng supported it with both hands.

"You are still growing. Do not cultivate today; rest early."

"Since you have already mastered the 'Cloud Sword Nineteen Forms' and the 'Cloud Sword True Art,' your master will teach you several new martial arts tomorrow."

Before leaving, Xiao Rang reminded him.

"Alright. Good night, Master."

Lin Heng nodded and obediently lay down to sleep.

The Human Body grew while sleeping. To prevent himself from becoming a little dwarf in the future, Lin Heng, who was still in his fledgling stage, naturally could not possibly cultivate through the night.

Early the next morning, Cloud Sword Palace began busily preparing for Lin Heng's Master Acknowledgment Ceremony a year later.

Of course, this had nothing to do with Lin Heng. At present, he only needed to do one thing: cultivate.

After finishing his morning seated meditation and Qi Refining Internal Cultivation.

At the Training Ground, Xiao Rang began teaching Lin Heng new martial arts.

"Although Cloud Sword Palace is renowned for its Sword Art, when traveling the Jianghu, one may inevitably lose one's weapon, need to pursue enemies, or face experts one cannot defeat by force. Therefore, one must also practice an Unarmed Martial Art and a Movement Technique."

"There is not much room for choice with Movement Arts, but there are many kinds of Unarmed Martial Arts."

"Fists, palms, fingers, or legs—which would you like to learn, disciple?"

Xiao Rang asked Lin Heng with a smile.

"Finger techniques."

Lin Heng gave a firm answer.

He had once heard Xiao Rang explain the characteristics of various martial arts. Finger techniques could not only serve as an emergency measure when one lost one's weapon, but also combined long-range attacks with the ability to seal and release acupoints. They were highly versatile and would not simply gather dust after being learned.

"Then your master will teach you a set of 'Primordial Finger.' This finger art balances hardness and softness. Externally, its finger force can split gold and sever jade; internally, it can release acupoints and heal injuries."

Xiao Rang spoke.

Afterward, he began explaining to Lin Heng, point by point, the methods of exerting force and the accompanying moves of this finger art.

Lin Heng remained fully focused. The Talent of a Cultivation Prodigy performed steadily—he understood the entire finger art the moment he learned it and became proficient the moment he practiced it.

Once Lin Heng had learned the finger art, Xiao Rang began teaching him a Movement Technique called "Gale Cloud."