"Lingbo Microstep"

Speaking of the Northern Darkness, one couldn't help but think of Zhuangzi's "Wandering Freely."

In the Northern Darkness there is a fish, whose name is Kun. Kun is so huge that no one knows how many thousands of miles it spans. It transforms into a bird, whose name is Peng. Peng's back is so vast that no one knows how many thousands of miles it spans.

In "Wandering Freely," Zhuangzi never directly described how vast the Northern Darkness was. Instead, he used the enormous size of Kun and Peng to vividly depict its breadth.

An inner cultivation art named after the Northern Darkness naturally had an inner power as deep and vast as the Northern Darkness itself.

Its depths were unknowable, its breadth immeasurable!

After all, "Wandering Freely" also mentioned:

Besides, if a body of water isn't deep enough, it won't have the strength to bear a large boat. Pour a cupful of water into a hollow in the ground, and a tiny blade of grass can serve as a boat. Set a cup there, and it will stick fast; the water is too shallow and the boat too large.

So when Lu Siye opened "Northern Darkness Divine Art - Volume 1," the first sentence that met his eyes was:

The foremost principle of this art is to accumulate inner power. Regard the Dantian as the Northern Darkness: it can bear boats both great and small, contain fish both large and tiny, and make every martial art under heaven serve me!

Every martial art under heaven could be used by him. What an incredible display of ambition!

Lu Siye read it with his blood boiling. He nearly wanted to travel to a martial arts world, defeat every hero under heaven, and claim the position of Martial Arts Alliance Chief!

But that was only wishful thinking. This world had far too many supernatural forces. Even with a divine art in hand, he still needed to keep a low profile.

Lu Siye spent several hours carefully committing every word and every meridian diagram in "Northern Darkness Divine Art - Volume 1" to memory.

Once he had memorized it all, Lu Siye prepared to begin his first cultivation of an inner art.

Normally, the first step in learning the "Northern Darkness Divine Art" was to dispel all inner power from one's previous techniques.

But Lu Siye had no inner power in his body, so he could skip that step.

Keeping every point of the art firmly in mind and guarding his focus, he began following its circulation route, attempting his first cycle.

As the art circulated, Lu Siye felt himself gradually becoming a swimming fish.

He struggled forward through a stream, then entered a broad river. After swimming for an unknown length of time, he finally reached its end.

There lay a vast, boundless black-and-white pool, its waters turning slowly like a Taiji symbol.

Then his vision began to pull away from the fish, as if his soul had left his body. He rose higher and higher, slowly at first, then faster and faster. In an instant, his consciousness returned to him.

Lu Siye opened his eyes. He could feel a faint, inconspicuous trickle of warmth moving through his Dantian.

Was that the Northern Darkness Origin True Qi?

Lu Siye understood. Now that he had refined his origin true qi, he could continue cultivating—or absorb other energy to increase his inner power.

He turned his gaze to the Evil Spirit Mirror beside him and curled his lips into a smile.

I'll use you to test it out!

Lu Siye went over to the mirror, placed his palm against it, steadied his mind, and began circulating the "Northern Darkness Divine Art."

A faint suction traveled from his Dantian up to his palm, drawing in the Yin energy lingering inside the mirror.

Strands of Yin energy were pulled out and flowed into his palm. As they passed through his meridians, they were gradually refined into the soft, yielding inner power of the Northern Darkness, then gathered in his Dantian.

With inner power added, the suction generated by his Dantian grew stronger. The Yin energy inside the Ghost Relic in the mirror began to leave its body under the pull.

The more Yin energy he absorbed, the more inner power he refined.

And the more inner power accumulated in his Dantian, the stronger the suction became, and the more Yin energy he absorbed.

It was a positive feedback loop.

In less than half an hour, the Ghost Relic could no longer produce Yin energy fast enough to keep up with what was being drained. The first crack appeared in its bones, and more and more Yin energy leaked through.

Gradually, the cracks spread until every inch of the Ghost Relic's bones was covered. With a muffled boom, it burst apart, vanishing into nothingness.

At the same time, the Evil Spirit Mirror shattered into tiny pieces that scattered across the floor.

The sound of the mirror breaking jolted Lu Siye awake. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at the fragments on the floor with some regret.

He'd planned to use it to bait a ghost and catch it in the act. He hadn't expected his scheme to fall apart before it even got off the ground.

But it was gone, and there was nothing to be done. He'd just have to put in more effort and go looking for ghosts himself.

That Ghost Relic had provided him with quite a lot of Yin energy. His Dantian was no longer as empty as before.

Instead, it now held a modest ball of inner power, revolving endlessly around the Northern Darkness Origin True Qi.

Lu Siye focused his thoughts and opened the system panel.

Host: Lu Siye

Fear Points: 1161

Cultivation Power: 165 years (External Power: 155 years; Internal Power: 10 years)

Martial Arts Techniques: "Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill," third level; "Body Tempering Art"; "Five Tiger Soul Severing Blade Technique," proficient; "Northern Darkness Divine Art," beginner

Special Items: Evil-Exorcising Fruit Knife; Blazing Blood Blade +1; "Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill"; "Five Tiger Soul Severing Blade Technique"

The system had thoughtfully indicated how many years of cultivation his inner power amounted to.

Lu Siye estimated that ten years of inner power was probably around the minimum strength of a Night Patrol Envoy.

The road to building up inner power was long indeed!

He stored "Northern Darkness Divine Art - Volume 1" in the system space, then picked up "Lingbo Microstep."

He reluctantly spent 1,000 Fear Points to upgrade "Lingbo Microstep" to "Lingbo Microstep - First Volume."

When it came to Lingbo Microstep, the first thing Lu Siye thought of was an elegant, ethereal line from "Ode to the Goddess of the Luo River," written by Cao Zhi of the Wei Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period.

As though a light cloud veils the moon, as though snowflakes drift on a swirling breeze.

Those lines perfectly captured the way Lingbo Microstep looked when performed.

Lu Siye opened the book and carefully memorized every key point in "Lingbo Microstep - First Volume."

The book explained that "Lingbo Microstep - First Volume" contained only the entry-level method. Once one reached the introductory level:

Cliffs and precipices could be traversed as easily as level ground.

When Lu Siye read that, he could already picture it.

Moreover, Lingbo Microstep wasn't simply a lightness skill. It also incorporated inner cultivation.

Based on the sixty-four hexagrams of the I Ching, Lingbo Microstep made one's inner breath circulate with every step.

After completing one full circuit of steps, the inner breath would complete a circuit as well, and one's inner power would grow along with it.

After memorizing all the key points, Lu Siye moved the living-room table aside and cleared enough space to practice. Then he began cultivating "Lingbo Microstep."

Ever since he'd taken the Dragon Essence Tiger Gall Pill given by the system, he had made rapid progress in every martial art he practiced.

In less than half an hour, he could complete one full circuit of steps.

Just as the manual said, his inner power had grown a little, though the increase wasn't very noticeable.

The first time was unfamiliar; the second was easier.

As he practiced more, the time Lu Siye needed to complete a full circuit grew shorter and shorter.

Gradually, it became impossible to make out Lu Siye's figure in the living room. Only afterimages remained.

His incredible speed stirred the air around him. Wind whooshed through the living room, and the curtains by the balcony fluttered noisily.