I'll Smash Your Skull to Pieces

As his mastery of Internal Cultivation Methods improved, the time required to cultivate his internal energy inevitably grew longer.

But for most martial artists, training in Martial Skills was also a slow process that took more and more time the further they advanced.

At that point, each martial artist had to decide whether to focus on cultivating internal energy or practicing Martial Skills.

If their talent was lacking and their energy limited, they would inevitably have to choose between the two.

[Practiced an Internal Cultivation Method. Achievement Points +10.]

When another prompt appeared before Gu Shaoan, he had just finished nourishing his Meridians. He guided his internal energy back to his Dantian, glanced at Zhou Zhiruo, who was still cultivating across from him, then picked up a medical text and began to read.

Soon, Gu Shaoan's mind was immersed in the medical principles described in the book.

At the same time, his physician proficiency continued to rise at a steady pace.

He didn't even notice that the carriage beneath him had rejoined the main road. His thoughts were entirely absorbed by the contents of the medical text in his hands.

Only when the carriage wheels jolted over a pothole did the bump pull Gu Shaoan from his thoughts.

[Studied a medical text. Achievement Points +20.]

[Current Achievement Points: 1002]

Gu Shaoan's eyes lit up as he looked at the prompts before him.

"I finally have enough Achievement Points."

Five days had passed since they wiped out the bandits.

And now, Gu Shaoan had finally saved up a thousand Achievement Points.

With a thought, the lottery wheel appeared in his mind.

As his freshly accumulated four-digit total of Achievement Points dwindled to a mere fraction, the lottery wheel before him began to spin.

A few moments later, when the wheel stopped, a prompt appeared before Gu Shaoan.

[Congratulations, player! You drew a Twenty Year Power Card (Superior Bone Structure).]

The moment the prompt appeared, the hand holding his medical text trembled involuntarily.

"A Power Card—and one worth twenty years?"

Gu Shaoan hadn't expected that just a few days after Master Miejue had given him a Bodhi Exquisite Pill to increase his power by two years, he'd draw a Twenty Year Power Card of his own.

Once he used it, Gu Shaoan's power would surge by twenty years.

And Gu Shaoan was only eleven.

What did it mean for an eleven-year-old kid to have more than twenty years of power?

See this little hand?

One palm strike, backed by twenty-two years and two months of power. Tell me—are you scared yet?

I'll smash your skull to pieces.

At that moment, Gu Shaoan was like someone who'd been poor for ages and had suddenly acquired a ton of gold. His emotions surged wildly.

But when he opened his eyes and saw Miejue and Zhou Zhiruo sitting in the carriage with him, meditating, he could only force down the urge to use the Power Card immediately.

After all, once the twenty years of power appeared in his body and were refined, the surging waves of internal energy would surely be noticed by Miejue beside him.

If Miejue probed his body with her internal energy and discovered that her eleven-year-old disciple suddenly had more than twenty years of power, she'd probably be stunned on the spot and question everything she knew.

It wasn't until evening, when the group passed through a town and checked into an inn, that Gu Shaoan finally had the chance. After locking the doors and windows, he leaped onto the bed, sat cross-legged, and eagerly summoned the Power Card he'd drawn that day.

At his thought, the word "Use" seemed to carry some sort of mysterious power.

The next moment, an unimaginably vast energy appeared inside Gu Shaoan. Unlike the violent, volcanic eruption of the Bodhi Exquisite Pill that day, this energy was gentle and mellow, like a waterfall of moonlight pouring down from the heavens.

The power was warm, pure, and vast, imbued with the tranquil feeling of time accumulated over the years.

It was as if it had not been forcibly poured into him from outside, but had risen naturally like a spring from the very depths of his life force.

There was no agonizing pain, no destructive force as he had expected. Only a nearly overwhelming wave of warmth instantly filled his limbs and body, making every cell in Gu Shaoan seem to sigh in comfort.

The energy was so immense, and yet so gentle and docile.

As soon as it entered his body, it flowed effortlessly into the internal energy of his Emei Heart Method, merging seamlessly with it as if they had always been one.

It was as though the memories of twenty years of arduous cultivation, along with the pure internal energy gained through training with Superior Bone Structure, had been packaged up and delivered to him in full.

But gentle didn't mean easy to endure!

Twenty years of power was simply too much. Though there was none of the tearing sensation he'd felt after taking the Bodhi Exquisite Pill, his Dantian still swelled rapidly under the sudden, twentyfold increase in energy!

It felt like an intensified version of waking up in the middle of the night desperately needing to pee—an unbearable fullness.

Fortunately, the power within him was gentle and pure. And since Gu Shaoan had taken the Bodhi Exquisite Pill a few days earlier, his internal energy had already grown considerably. With his Emei Nine Yangs Technique Second Layer running at full force, he quickly refined the energy into his own power.

As the energy was gradually absorbed, the feeling of pressure in his Dantian slowly eased.

His internal energy continued to grow. As his technique circulated, the bottlenecks that had once been solid seemed fragile before the surging flood of power, as vast as rivers and seas.

Following the flow of his internal energy, one Hidden Meridian after another was opened by the tremendous force.

In the blink of an eye, the circulation route of Gu Shaoan's Emei Nine Yangs Technique Second Layer changed abruptly, incorporating several Hidden Meridians that had just been opened.

Soon, even more Hidden Meridians were opened.

This caused the circulation route of the Emei Nine Yangs Technique Second Layer to change once more.

In less than fifteen minutes, drawing on the immense power within him, Gu Shaoan's Emei Nine Yangs Technique Second Layer had reached Complete Mastery.

Once his core Internal Cultivation Method reached Complete Mastery at its current stage, the routes along which his internal energy flowed instantly became several times more complex.

At the same time, the internal energy in his body was continuously compressed, tempered, and purified as his technique changed.

Eventually, all of his internal energy took on a more majestic, profound quality.

"Pop!"

Finally, at the very limit, two sounds like bubbles bursting rose from within Gu Shaoan's body.

The Dai Mai among the Eight Extraordinary Meridians was forcefully opened by the impact of his internal energy.

The Yin Qiao Mai, Yang Wei Mai, Hand Shaoyang San Jiao Meridian, Foot Yangming Stomach Meridian, and Foot Taiyang Bladder Meridian followed close behind.

Once all three Meridians and three channels involved in the first and second layers of the Emei Nine Yangs Technique had been opened, Gu Shaoan suddenly felt his body grow light!

An indescribable feeling of ease swept through him like a spring breeze passing over a frozen river!

In an instant, the flood of internal energy surged through his now-unimpeded network of Meridians, no longer meeting the slightest resistance!

Everywhere his internal energy flowed, warmth and vitality blossomed.

Even his muscles, bones, and internal organs were subtly nourished and strengthened by the rapid circulation of his pure internal energy.

After a long while,

his surging internal energy flowed like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, finally gathering in the Lower Dantian, a lake grown even wider and deeper.

Gu Shaoan slowly opened his eyes. A glint seemed to flash in the depths of his dark pupils, like a cold star in the night sky—gone in an instant, but leaving behind a chilling trail of light.

The moment he opened his eyes, Gu Shaoan could clearly see even the faintest scratch in the corner of the wall.

The chirping of cicadas in his ears was also several times louder than before.

Even his sense of smell had become sharper.

These were changes to his Five Senses brought about by opening and nourishing his Meridians.

Feeling the heavy, flowing power within him—condensed like mercury yet surging with life—Gu Shaoan was thrilled.

He'd done it!

As one reader in the comments explained, just how powerful was Zhang Wuji after mastering the divine skill eight years later? Master Miejue would be forty-seven by then, with roughly forty years of internal energy, yet even with the Heavenly Sword in hand, she still wouldn't be a match for Zhang Wuji! By then, the protagonist would have twenty-two plus eight, or thirty years of internal energy. That's still less than Master Miejue's forty years, so it won't be too outrageous. Don't worry, everyone!