He Heng's Ambition

"So this is the Dan Force of National Arts? It condenses the force of the entire body and concentrates it in the dantian, forming an inwardly contained Golden Core, making every part of the body round and complete. Embracing the Elixir and sinking the hips compresses one's Essence, Qi, and Spirit, blood, marrow, and bodily fluids into a single point, like the tiny point from which the Great Thousand World evolved when primordial chaos first opened. It reaches the realm where one can control Blood Qi with intent and push physical ability beyond the limits of the human body." In a spacious training room, He Heng stood in the center in a firm horse stance, his eyes closed as he sensed the changes after his breakthrough into Dan Force.

After a long while, he opened his eyes. A sharp light flashed through them as he glanced around and said in a low voice, "National Arts at the Dan Force level are already equivalent to Outer Hundred Bones Grand Perfection in the Great Heaven World. The Gang Jin and Shatter Void that come afterward are unique to this place. Those extensions of the National Arts realms simply don't exist in the Great Heaven World, because the spiritual energy of heaven and earth there is abundant. There's no need for such realms at all.

"Gang Jin is merely a method of releasing force. Force is concentrated to an extreme and can strike outward through the body across empty space. The force throughout one's body erupts, tearing through the air currents and transforming them into gang qi. But in the Great Heaven World, Internal Energy exists. One can simply send true qi out of the body directly. There's no need for this."

As he spoke, He Heng suddenly threw a punch into the air. His force was cold and fierce, exploding with a terrifying roar. The air churned madly, as though a torrent of annihilation had swept through it.

"This is Gang Jin, a method developed by Martial Dao Experts here to increase their combat power after their Future Path had been cut off." He Heng looked at his right hand. "As for the so-called Shatter Void and See God Unbroken, they're actually perfect control over one's own body—or rather, the Microscopic Realm. The Third Rank of Technique in martial arts, the Microscopic Realm, can not only affect external objects, but also oneself. Master every inch of your flesh and Meridians, and you become the god who rules your own body!"

"This realm isn't necessary in the Great Heaven World either. With Internal Energy, one can achieve internal vision after initially reaching the Inner Hundred Skeletons Realm and observe one's own condition. There's no need for such trouble." He Heng frowned slightly. Could it be that the highest realm of National Arts would be of no great use to him in the future?

"No, that's not right!" He Heng shook his head. This realm should still have its unique merits. Internal vision in the Great Heaven World used Internal Energy to control the body through the Meridians, while National Arts' Shatter Void and See God Unbroken used Blood Qi and force to permeate the entire body. They were two different approaches. If he could perfectly merge these internal and external domains, his control over himself would surely surpass that of other Hundred Bones Realm cultivators. He would lay the most solid foundation possible in the early stages of Martial Dao Cultivation.

"In that case, I still need to properly comprehend this realm. The foundation in the early stages of Martial Dao Cultivation is extremely important. If I can achieve things in the initial realms that others cannot, then even if my aptitude is somewhat inferior, I'll certainly be able to catch up to those monsters in the future." He Heng's voice was solemn. He knew that although his aptitude was not bad and far surpassed that of ordinary people, he was vastly inferior to the top students at Flying Immortal Academy—not to mention the elite disciples of the Great Mystic Sects. Every one of them was a peerless genius, one in ten thousand, with Bone Structure and comprehension that stood at the absolute peak. If he wanted to contend with them in the future, he had to surpass them from the very beginning.

Although the He Family was one of the Seventy-two Noble Families of Jiuzhou, He Heng's talent was not outstanding. Among those of his generation in the family, he could at most rank in the top thirty, so he could not receive much cultivation resource support. Otherwise, he would not have considered joining a Great Mystic Sect. Great Mystic Sects might be wonderful, but once he entered one, he would merely be an ordinary disciple. How could that compare to being a young master at home?

The family's resources were limited. If he could rank among the top ten, it would be different—elders would personally instruct him, and the resources he received would not be much inferior to those of Core Disciples in the Great Mystic Sects. But disciples like him, who ranked above average, had some status and were regarded as the future backbone of the family. They would not be abandoned, yet neither could they receive many resources. That caused He Heng to fall behind others at the start of his cultivation. With no hope for the future, how could he accept that?

That was why he had abandoned cultivation within the family and entered Flying Immortal Academy, hoping to join a Great Mystic Sect. These sects were massive powers with Eternal Inheritance. Each possessed dozens of times more resources than the He Family, as well as far more opportunities.

However, there was no such thing as a truly good place in this world. Though Great Mystic Sects offered countless opportunities, their competition was even fiercer. They gathered outstanding geniuses from all over the Nine Provinces, including the favored heirs of numerous ancient families. How could it be easy to stand out there?

Moreover, whether He Heng could even enter one was still uncertain. With his original strength, he only barely qualified to join those great sects. Whether he could truly enter depended on luck. Even if he did, he would only be an ordinary Outer Disciple. They were called disciples, but in truth they were little more than servants. Whether they received any training depended on whether they could build good relationships with Inner Sect and Core Disciples and gain the favor of powerful figures.

That had originally been He Heng's plan. He had the backing of the He Family, one of the great families of the Nine Provinces, and he had lived two lives. His temperament was steady, and he understood when to advance and when to retreat. He believed that after entering the outer sect, he could build good relations with those powerful figures. After cultivating diligently for several years and reaching sufficient strength, he would then seek entry into the Inner Sect.

But after obtaining the Myriad Heavens Treasure Mirror, He Heng's ambitions had grown. He was no longer satisfied with that. The Flying Immortal Academies throughout the Nine Provinces had been jointly established by the Great Mystic Sects to supply fresh blood to their respective sects.

To assess the students' true abilities, they held an Ascension Assessment every three years, equivalent to Earth's college entrance examination. Anyone who performed outstandingly in the Ascension Assessment could directly enter the Inner Sect of a Great Mystic Sect. Those with exceptionally outstanding performances might even be noticed by a powerful figure from one of the Great Mystic Sects and become Core Disciples directly.

With He Heng's original strength, he could never have coveted such things. But now that he possessed the Myriad Heavens Treasure Mirror, he had the qualifications.

The Myriad Heavens Treasure Mirror could travel across the worlds of the heavens. If his soul traveled through another world, no matter how much time passed there, only an instant would pass in the Great Heaven World. Though it required sufficient time to accumulate energy, He Heng believed that before the Ascension Assessment arrived next July, he could certainly travel through one or two more worlds. He could cultivate for decades in those worlds. With such accumulated experience, he refused to believe he could not defeat those monsters.

"It's still too early to talk about that. The greatest crisis before me now is that my true body in the Great Heaven World has fallen into the hands of that witch from the Crimson Fire Demonic Sect. She wants to refine me into Human Medicine. That is the true life-or-death crisis." He Heng suddenly clenched his fists, a trace of ferocity appearing in his eyes. He believed that after obtaining the Myriad Heavens Treasure Mirror, he could rise even if he failed the Ascension Assessment. But he had not forgotten the witch from the Crimson Fire Demonic Sect who intended to use him for alchemy. If he did not deal with her, everything he had would become nothing.

She was the greatest crisis on his path to growth. If he dealt with her, the future would be wide open. With the Myriad Heavens Treasure Mirror in hand, He Heng would never lack opportunities to rise. But if he could not deal with her, then nothing else mattered. Everything would become empty.

"Obtaining the Myriad Heavens Treasure Mirror is a Great Opportunity, but great opportunities are often accompanied by Great Tribulations. That witch is my calamity. If I can overcome This Calamity, the Great Dao will surely lie within reach. Otherwise, I can only perish, and all my grand ambitions will come to nothing." Killing intent filled He Heng's eyes as he stared coldly into the air. "Therefore, before I return, I must possess the strength to kill her and overcome This Calamity with an invincible bearing."

He Heng was determined to pursue the Great Dao. Anyone who blocked his path would be slain without exception. And now, the cultivator of the Crimson Red Demonic Sect was the first calamity on his path. If he overcame it, he would surely sail smoothly onward and dominate the myriad worlds with the Myriad Heavens Treasure Mirror. If he failed, then no matter how great his opportunity was, he would be nothing more than a piece of Human Medicine. There was no room for compromise.

"That witch is a Martial Dao Expert of the Three Peng Realm, a full three major realms above me. She is also a disciple of the Crimson Fire Demonic Sect and possesses the inheritance of a major Demon Sect. Her strength surpasses that of ordinary Three Peng Realm martial artists. Under normal circumstances, facing someone like her would mean certain death for me. It would be impossible to win." He Heng calmly analyzed his own strength and hers. His mood sank somewhat, but the determination in his eyes quickly filled him once more.

"No matter how strong she is, anyone who dares block me will be slain!" He Heng's words were cold and resolute. After that journey through the worlds, his Dao heart had long since become firm as a boulder, utterly unshakable.

"She may be strong, but I'm not without a chance. First, she is Grievously Wounded. She killed Wang Da, a master extremely close to the Three Peng Realm, in a very short time. She must have paid a tremendous price, perhaps by using some secret technique with severe consequences. That is why she needs to refine me into medicine. Her secret technique must have enormous side effects; otherwise, she would not need to do this. Furthermore, Wang Da should have inflicted tremendous damage on her before his death, worsening her injuries. Conservatively speaking, she has at most half her strength remaining." He Heng estimated her strength and arrived at a pleasing conclusion.

"That gives me an opening. At the very least, I can strike once—a single blow sufficient to kill!" He Heng said coldly. He had already formed a plan for his return. It would be a life-and-death struggle, but he did not fear it.

"What I need to do now is raise my strength to its peak before returning, accumulate everything to the limit, and unleash that strongest strike."

He Heng calmly walked out of the training room and stood on the stairs, one hand resting against the railing. He raised his head and looked toward the sky, where white clouds drifted.