Three Declines of Limitlessness: Perils of the Martial Path; Fire Court: Mad Demon, Perilous Furnace

Wood Grafting Divine Art.

A cultivation technique derived from the Wood Element Art, the two sharing the same origin of inner force.

Its relationship was similar to the pairing of Water Soft Palm and Wind Listening Ears.

Yet its nature was far more sinister and wicked than Wind Listening Ears.

It was divided into three parts, each entirely independent.

The first part was called "Flower Transfer Grafting."

This art could transplant the limbs of other Martial Masters and graft them onto oneself.

Its purpose was constant alteration and replacement, like a craftsman selecting the finest timber.

It sought so-called "perfect limbs" to bring one's physical qualities to their peak.

The second was "Stealing Heaven Replacing Sun."

This part concerned the human body's core—the replacement of the five viscera and six bowels.

Its primary use was to create a "shortcut" for the Wood Element Art's breakthrough into the Fourth Level.

The key acupoints that had to be opened for the Wood Element Art's Fourth Level were all located in the five viscera and six bowels.

The method of "Stealing Heaven Replacing Sun" was to seize another person's internal organs beforehand, forcibly open the corresponding acupoints outside the body with secret methods, then transplant these "finished" organs into oneself.

This bypassed the most cumbersome step of visualization, sensing, and searching for acupoints.

The third was "The Peach Replaces the Plum." This was the secret art Xia Jingtian had mentioned, used to deal with the realm above the Fifth Level and break through "Limitlessness."

Here, Chen Duan was encountering detailed information about "Limitlessness" for the first time.

Once true qi was complete, one reached beyond the Fifth Level. Beyond the Fifth Level lay "Limitlessness."

The road to breaking through "Limitlessness" required passing three layers of decline tribulations, known as the "Three Declines of Limitlessness."

One decline, one layer of heaven; one tribulation, one ascent to immortality.

Only by enduring all Three Declines could one truly surpass the boundaries of the mortal world and attain the rank of a heavenly being.

Yet the booklet in his hand contained only the details of the first trial, "Blood and Qi Decline."

As for the latter two declines, it not only offered no detailed explanation, but did not even mention their names.

This first decline, "Blood and Qi Decline," was the decay of life's very source.

Blood and qi were the foundation of the physical body, the vessel that carried inner force.

And "Blood and Qi Decline" itself contained two transformations of "Limitlessness."

After completing the Fifth Level, a Martial Master had to actively guide their blood and qi into a period of decay, allowing it to continuously drain away and plummet wildly.

During that drastic shift from flourishing blood and qi to decline, they had to precisely seize and stabilize that critical "extreme point" of decay.

This was the first "Limitlessness" of Blood and Qi Decline—the "Limitlessness" of decline.

Yet that was not the end. What followed immediately was a rebound and explosive surge of blood and qi.

At that point, one had to face the second "Limitlessness"—the "Limitlessness" of increasing blood.

Under ordinary circumstances, a Martial Master's rate of recovering blood and qi through normal food intake was far too slow to keep up with the demands of that explosive increase, so External Objects were required.

Chen Duan recalled Feng Qu Xian mentioning that Blood Worms were a sharp weapon for breaking through "Limitlessness."

Could he have meant they were for overcoming this hurdle of surging blood and qi?

One of a Blood Worm's traits was its ability to store an oceanic quantity of blood and qi in advance, making it perfectly suited for this purpose.

Ordinarily, breaking through "Limitlessness" placed an immense burden upon a Martial Master's body and caused tremendous harm, easily damaging one's foundation.

Every failure made the next breakthrough even more difficult.

"The Peach Replaces the Plum" solved this problem.

The core of blood and qi in the Wood Element Art lay in the heart. Enduring the impact suffered by the heart during "Blood and Qi Decline" was the key.

"The Peach Replaces the Plum" specifically meant preparing an outsider's heart as an additional source of blood and qi to withstand "Blood and Qi Decline."

Put simply, it meant using another person's "heart" to break through one's own "Limitlessness."

Even if it failed, the foreign heart would bear most of the backlash, reducing the impact on the Martial Artist's own foundation to the minimum.

Thus, the difficulty of the next attempt to assault "Limitlessness" would not increase as it normally would.

Moreover, the quality of this "heart" was crucial. If it came from a powerful source and was brimming with blood and qi, the chances of breaking through "Limitlessness" would naturally rise with the tide.

After Chen Duan Quickly Skimmed the booklet's contents, he remained skeptical of this opportunistic method of breaking through "Limitlessness."

After all, the booklet described nothing but its convenience and benefits.

As for drawbacks, there was not a single word.

Yet how could anything in this world be wholly without harm?

To bypass such an enormous obstacle with not the slightest hidden danger was something he simply could not believe.

Although, to Chen Duan, cultivation techniques themselves had no distinction between righteous and wicked; the key lay in the person using them.

Still, the price behind such a heaven-defying shortcut was likely far from as insignificant as the booklet made it sound.

However, the realm of breaking through "Limitlessness" was still some distance away for him, so there was no need to investigate it too deeply for now.

Compared to that, what interested him more at present was the first part, "Flower Transfer Grafting."

As for "Stealing Heaven Replacing Sun," in his eyes, it was purely a shortcut chosen by weak people of dull aptitude, incapable of finding the acupoints within their bodies through their own efforts.

Besides, the step of "visualizing acupoints" was not merely for opening acupoints.

It also involved a certain "divine intent" carried by a true cultivation technique.

Like the "killing" of Fuhu Fist, or the "absolute" of Moon Grasping Leg.

To bypass that step was no different from buying the casket and returning the pearl.

One would surely miss certain crucial "scenery" along the path of martial cultivation.

It might also plant unforeseeable problems in the road beyond the Fifth Level.

Beyond that, all three parts shared one common restriction.

According to the booklet, whether transplanting limbs or replacing internal organs, one needed "wood of the same origin."

That was to say, only physical body parts from Martial Masters who had also cultivated the Wood Element Art could possibly be grafted successfully.

With those not of the same origin, the rejection reaction was extremely severe.

And even "wood of the same origin" could not be of just any level.

It could be neither too "old" nor too "young."

The physical bodies of Martial Masters at the Wood Element Art: Third Level were exactly the right "good timber."

For now, however, Chen Duan merely noted this so-called restriction and did not bind himself to it completely.

After breaking through the Fifth Level, he had gained a new understanding of the nature of inner force.

His thinking had also become broader and more expansive. He would no longer view problems in a confined manner.

He focused inward, sensing the true qi in his Tanzhong Acupoint.

Though he had only just entered the Fifth Level, he could already vaguely sense that the mysteries hidden within this realm far exceeded imagination.

It was like a treasure vault that had only just opened, waiting for him to explore it in depth.

Even the "inner force fusion" he had envisioned before might perhaps find an opportunity for resolution later.

He temporarily suppressed his many thoughts.

Chen Duan put away the booklet.

For now, he still needed to keep his feet on the ground.

This Wood Grafting Divine Art could only be attempted after the Wood Element Art's Fourth Level.

He gathered his mind and began cultivating.

Yuanxiang Sect, Fire Court.

The pill furnace exploded.

Heat waves surged.

Black Smoke spilled forth.

It was mixed with the strange stench of burnt medicinal herbs.

"Ah!"

A crazed roar echoed through the pill chamber.

"Failed!"

"Failed again!"

Yan Cong plunged both hands into his hair, looking utterly deranged!

"Why?!"

"Why did it fail again?!"

Gu Boliang was forced back two steps.

Seeing his master in such a state, he groaned inwardly.

As the Fire Court's chief disciple, he had accompanied his master in pill refinement recently, and had truly come to understand what it meant to attend a ruler like attending a tiger.

Looking at Yan Cong's hair, which had turned much whiter lately, he sighed inwardly.

"Master."

Forcing himself to speak, he reported, "Junior Brother Qi from the outer sect is seeking an audience outside. He says he has an urgent matter..."

"Not seeing him! Get out!"

"Get the hell out, all of you!!"

Yan Cong roared, beginning to throw things around.

Knowing that Yan Cong was in the heat of rage after his pill refinement failure, Gu Boliang hurriedly bowed and withdrew.

"Senior Brother Gu, Master threw you out again?"

Bai Jin looked at Gu Boliang's somewhat bedraggled appearance and asked quietly.

"Ah..." Gu Boliang let out a long sigh and shook his head.

"He's been like this ever since something went wrong after he consumed that pill."

Bai Jin also fell silent.

Some days ago, Zhong Shou had tried to flee the sect, only to be intercepted in advance by their master and him.

Afterward, Zhong Shou had been refined into a pill. Once their master consumed it, problems arose.

Bai Jin could not say exactly what the cause was.

He only knew that Zhong Shou seemed to have tampered with his own body long ago, setting Yan Cong up even after death.

Not only had Yan Cong's cultivation plummeted, but he had also developed this current "mental instability."

Day after day, he obsessed over opening the furnace to refine pills again and again, only to fail every time.

He had even begun seizing outer sect disciples whose cultivation had yet to mature and refining them into pills.

"If this continues, one day you and I might end up filling that pill furnace too. And at a time like this, they still have to hold some Martial Alliance Meeting. What a year of shifting winds and storms..."

He patted Bai Jin on the shoulder, then departed with another long sigh.

After lingering for a moment, Bai Jin silently turned and left as well.

"Senior Brother Bai, how did it go?"

The moment he saw Bai Jin emerge, Qi Baorui hurried forward to ask.

Bai Jin glanced at him, his tone calm and unreadable.

"Master will not see you. Go back. Junior Brother Qi, simply do what is within your duties. Do not ask too much, and do not meddle too much."

Though his words were soft, Qi Baorui heard a trace of warning in them.

Qi Baorui could only cup his hands and leave helplessly.

Recently, several outer sect disciples had vanished mysteriously in succession.

They had not defected, because none of their personal belongings in their residences had been touched. They had simply vanished into thin air.

No living person could be found, no corpse could be seen.

That was why he had made this trip, seeking an audience with his master.

Qi Baorui did not return to his residence.

After leaving the sect, he took a carriage and made several twists and turns before arriving at an inconspicuous courtyard within the city.

After exchanging the secret signal,

he walked inside.

Creak~

The door opened, and he entered the room.

Qi Baorui shut the door behind him.

"Senior Brother Qi, you finally came." A somewhat lazy voice sounded.

"I'm here."

Qi Baorui answered in a deep voice and stepped forward.

Several people were already gathered in the hall.

The leader sat facing south.

The others, from different courts within the sect, sat separately on either side.

Mo Zhen, seated in the place of honor, looked at Qi Baorui. His tone remained calm. "You've thought it through, Senior Brother Qi?"

Qi Baorui swept his gaze over every face present.

At last, he took a deep breath and nodded heavily.

"Yes. I've thought it through."

Mo Zhen raised a hand in indication. "Good. Someone, bring Senior Brother Qi a seat and serve tea!"