Cultivation Method

Back in the dormitory, he shut the door, and the room fell quiet.

Xue Lingyun took the medicinal herbs from his ring one by one and arranged them across the table—Iron Bone Vine, Stone Marrow Grass, Crimson Blood Ginseng, Vermilion Fruit, Jade Marrow Ganoderma, Warm Vein Flower, and several supplementary ingredients whose names he did not know.

They had all been prepared according to the formula in the External Training Chapter of the <Dharma Cleansing Marrow and Changing Tendons Scripture>. Yan Shaozhe had been quite generous this time; the quantities were ample, and the quality was good.

As he filled the bathing barrel with hot water, he reviewed the details of this cultivation method in his mind.

The <Dharma Cleansing Marrow and Changing Tendons Scripture> was divided into three chapters: the Internal Training Marrow Cleansing Chapter, the External Training Body Tempering Chapter, and the Soul Power Circulation Chapter.

Each of these three chapters, taken alone, would be a top-tier treasure in any system. But what truly made them formidable was how they could be combined, complementing one another in an ever-advancing cycle.

What would happen if someone obtained only one of the chapters?

First, the Soul Power Circulation Chapter.

The "Heart Source Circulation Technique" he currently cultivated had been improved from this chapter.

The original foundation was an orthodox internal cultivation heart method, emphasizing "the heart as the source, qi circulating through the heavens."

He had followed its instructions during those years in the Far North. It worked, but it had always felt as though there were a layer in between—like using a standard mold to cast a pot of complex alloy liquid. It could take shape, but something always felt off.

Later, after absorbing the Soul Ring of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, he dismantled that heart method in a moment of crisis and reassembled it around the Primal Heart as its core. Only then had he managed to create the version he used now.

The benefits after the improvement were obvious: Soul Power recovered quickly, his endurance was greater, and the Primal Heart's ability to store Soul Power of different attributes could only truly be brought into play through this circulation method.

With every circulation cycle, Soul Power departed from his heart, traveled once along a specific route through his meridians, and returned to his heart. Every circuit made it a little denser and a little stronger.

Even with Soul Power at just over thirty levels, his recovery speed far surpassed those at the same level. That was all thanks to this.

But what if someone obtained only the original Soul Power Circulation Chapter, without the Body Tempering Chapter or the Marrow Cleansing Chapter?

They would probably follow the path of a standard internal cultivation master.

In a martial arts world, they would be like an old taoist priest who secluded himself in the mountains and cultivated inner strength painstakingly for decades—his internal energy deep, his control precise, able to use strength to command techniques and turn an ordinary long-fist style into something capable of shattering steles and splitting rocks.

The flaw was equally obvious: if one cultivated only internal arts and not external arts, the body would fail to keep up with the growth of internal energy. It was like putting a fine engine into a broken frame—the faster it ran, the more likely it was to fall apart.

If he truly encountered a horizontal training master who had cultivated external arts to the extreme, the other party could simply endure his palm force and charge straight through, then cripple him with a single punch.

More troublesome still, the original internal cultivation heart method placed certain demands on the body.

If one's physique was too weak and one's meridians too narrow, forcing oneself to cultivate it could instead lead to qi deviation.

Those people in martial arts novels whose meridians ran in reverse while cultivating internal energy, causing them to vomit blood and die, had most likely obtained only the internal cultivation heart method without a corresponding physique to support it.

So, taken alone, this chapter counted as a first-rate internal cultivation heart method—but only first-rate.

Next was the External Training Body Tempering Chapter.

The underlying principle of this chapter could be summed up in martial arts terms as "from the outside inward."

No qi cultivation, no cultivation of the mind—just pure physical torment: weight training, taking blows, pushing oneself to the limit, and using medicinal baths to temper the body, hammering flesh, skin, tendons, and bones as hard as possible.

There were ready examples in martial arts stories. Jin Yong's Yang Guo practiced swordsmanship amid ocean tides after losing an arm. He had no profound internal cultivation heart method, yet by fighting the waves day after day, he forcibly cultivated internal energy no weaker than that of the Five Greats.

Gu Long's A Fei had grown up in the wilderness from childhood. He inherited no internal cultivation heart method, merely tempering the single, simple motion of drawing and thrusting his sword day after day until he ultimately cultivated swordsmanship of unparalleled speed.

Fu Hongxue's saber-drawing technique and Jing Wuming's swift sword followed the same path—decades of relentless polishing. Once external arts reached their peak, internal energy would naturally be born from without and enter within.

What would happen if someone obtained only the Body Tempering Chapter, without an internal cultivation heart method to guide them?

This path demanded exceptional talent and even greater perseverance.

An ordinary person might train for an entire lifetime and still become nothing more than a wandering martial artist, unable even to cultivate internal energy.

They might be strong, with tough bones and sinews, but without the support of internal energy, they could never unleash those true Killing Moves.

But if someone with genuine talent succeeded, it would become the most tyrannical and direct means of attack. Wherever their fists and feet reached, they would possess muscles of steel and bones of iron, with no need for flashy tricks.

Like the Iron Shirt and Golden Bell Cover in martial arts tales—when cultivated to the extreme, blades would leave only a white mark, while swords could not pierce them. That was the pinnacle of pure external arts.

The flaws were obvious as well.

Internal energy born from external training was often scattered and crude, difficult to control with precision. It was like a wild bull—its strength was truly immense, but asking it to embroider was nothing but a dream.

Moreover, without the nourishment of an internal cultivation heart method, a body tempered purely through external arts would easily retain hidden injuries with age.

Those old-generation external arts masters who spent their later years plagued by injuries and illness were proof enough.

He had cultivated this chapter since childhood.

The bitter cold of the Far North, the sparring training arranged by the Snow Empress, and Xiao Bai leading him across mountains and plains were all part of Body Tempering.

Medicinal baths were merely one of the supplementary methods.

After more than a decade, the foundation of this body was far more solid than those of others at the same level who relied purely on Soul Power.

Finally came the Internal Training Marrow Cleansing Chapter.

This chapter was the most special.

It did not directly provide combat strength, yet it was the foundation of the other two chapters.

The Marrow Cleansing Chapter transformed the body layer by layer, step by step.

First came foundation building, then qi refinement, and only afterward came the true unity of inner and outer.

The First Stage was called "Dust Cleansing."

In martial arts terms, it meant washing away the impurities and filth accumulated in the body after birth, bit by bit.

A newborn infant's body was at its purest, but after living for several years, eating grains and breathing Turbid Qi, all manner of impurities would accumulate within it.

These impurities clogged the meridians and hid within flesh and blood, becoming natural obstacles to cultivation.

In this world's terms, it meant reshaping the meridians and purifying the physique, greatly improving one's affinity with Soul Power and allowing one's cultivation speed to far surpass that of ordinary people.

This stage consumed the most resources, and the earlier one cultivated it, the better.

When one was young, the body had yet to fully form and the meridians had not solidified. Using external force to cleanse them then produced the best results. Once one grew up, the meridians took shape and the bones hardened. Cleansing the marrow then became far more difficult; even stronger force would be far less effective than it had been in childhood.

That was why major sects began soaking their Core Disciples in medicinal baths from childhood.

In martial arts novels, things capable of cleansing marrow and purging meridians—century-old ganoderma, humanoid fleeceflower root, Vermilion Fruit, snow lotus, mutant snake gallbladders, Thousand-Year Toad Venom, Golden-Lined Frogs, Blood Toads, and the like—were all supreme treasures that could make the martial world fight one another to the death.

A single such item appearing in an entire novel was already impressive.

Even in Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, only things on the level of the Manggu Zhuha and the Thousand-Year Ice Silkworm barely met the threshold for marrow cleansing.

The same was true in this world. Which medicinal herb capable of remaking a person's physique from beginning to end was not a heavenly treasure?

Fortunately, he had the Far North at his back, supported by the collections of the Snow Empress and Ice Empress. If anything was lacking, he could simply have Xiao Bai search the mountains and plains for it. They could always find something close enough. This stage had not caused any problems.

The Second Stage was called "Tendon Transformation."

It opened every hidden meridian and expanded the capacity of the meridians. In martial arts terms, this was called "opening the Ren and Du Meridians." In this world, it meant making the speed and pathways of Soul Power circulation far superior to those of the same rank.

For complex Soul Skills requiring several meridians to operate simultaneously, others would need a long time to gather power, while he could casually throw them out without the slightest hitch.

The Third Stage was called "Bone Tempering."

The bones would be tempered until they shone like jade, while flesh, blood, tendons, and fascia became as tough as metal and stone.

In martial arts, this was called the Jade Bone Golden Body. In this world, it meant his physical defense could contend with Defense System Soul Masters of the same rank, and it was also where he found the confidence to absorb Soul Rings beyond his level.

Once these three stages were completed, an ordinary person would be forcibly remade into a martial arts prodigy.

Even without the Body Tempering Chapter and the Soul Power Circulation Chapter, this body alone could reach the point of being impervious to blades and spears, solid as a rock.

In this world's terms, a Soul Master with a weak physique could rely on this body to absorb Soul Rings beyond their level, with defensive strength that even exceeded that of Soul Masters specializing in defense.

But what if someone obtained only the Marrow Cleansing Chapter, without the other two chapters?

They would probably be—no matter how well their physique had been transformed—nothing more than an ordinary person with a good foundation.

They would have talent, but no method of turning that talent into strength.

Like a fine piece of jade that had never been carved, it would ultimately never become an artifact.

Those burly men in martial arts stories born with divine strength might have excellent foundations, but when they encountered a true internal arts master, they would still be toyed with completely.

Moreover, the Marrow Cleansing Chapter required an enormous amount of energy. Medicinal herbs could sustain the first three stages, but what about afterward?

Beginning with the Fourth Stage, it required an unending stream of energy to wash over the body. It required tempering in battle and breakthroughs at the limit.

Without the Body Tempering Chapter to temper the body, and without the Soul Power Circulation Chapter to provide energy, the Marrow Cleansing Chapter alone could not be cultivated beyond the Fourth Stage.

From the Fourth Stage onward, the focus was on the unity of inner and outer, on the circulation of energy.

The Body Tempering Chapter tempered the body, continuously squeezing out potential through extreme training and driving breakthroughs in the Marrow Cleansing Chapter;

After the Marrow Cleansing Chapter broke through, the physique improved further in turn, making cultivation of the Body Tempering Chapter twice as effective with half the effort—the transformed body could endure greater loads under the same training volume, recover faster, and naturally improve faster.

The Soul Power Circulation Chapter provided an endless supply of energy, using deep Soul Power to nourish the body in reverse;

And the physique transformed by the Marrow Cleansing Chapter had wider, tougher meridians, making Soul Power circulation smoother and more efficient—with the time others needed to complete one circuit, he could complete two. As small gains accumulated, the gap would emerge.

The powerful body tempered by the Body Tempering Chapter allowed the Soul Power Circulation Chapter to endure more tyrannical circulation routes. He did not need to be as cautious as those internal cultivation masters with weak bodies, forever afraid of damaging his meridians;

Meanwhile, the deep Soul Power provided by the Soul Power Circulation Chapter could in turn support the Body Tempering Chapter's higher-intensity training—without sufficient energy, those extreme training sessions could not be endured at all.

This was a perfect closed loop.

Each of the three chapters could aid the other two, promoting one another and rising in an ever-advancing cycle.

Those who cultivated only one chapter would never understand the terror of such synergy.