Facing the Abyss to Cultivate Qi, Armor-Piercing True Energy

A few months after becoming the recognized head disciple, An Jing and the other boys and girls welcomed the true training of Xuanming Manor.

It was not merely physical conditioning; Xuanming Manor began to truly teach "martial arts" and "mental cultivation methods."

The beginning of Da Chen martial arts is known as [Internal Breath], but before formally becoming an internal breath martial artist, apprentice martial disciples must pass [Three Passes].

The first pass is called the Heart: to be fearless in the face of danger, and to not blink even when blades are pressed against one's body.

The second pass is called the Body: to have abundant strength, capable of throwing a thousand punches without fatigue.

And the final pass is called Technique: one must hone a single skill until it is perfectly rounded and unified, allowing a single flow of energy to transition through hundreds of moves and thousands of forms at will.

Only when the Heart, Body, and Technique are all achieved can one strike that blow which channels power through the entire body, and thus comprehend "Internal Breath."

The Body pass is easy to pass; it only requires training. The disciples of Xuanming Manor were selected from all over, so their aptitude was beyond question; anyone could succeed with steady progress.

The Heart pass requires sparring, training until the mind is still and the spirit is focused, until one does not blink when a fist arrives before their eyes, and does not panic when pain pierces the brain.

Ever since An Jing defeated eleven people in a row, sparring became a daily routine on the training grounds. Although no one would challenge An Jing, the other four disciples who received extra rations were challenged every day. Their positions would change every ten days, and their skills were honed extremely quickly.

The final pass, Technique, is the most difficult. It requires day and night of polishing, as well as innate inspiration, to use technique to fuse the "Heart" and "Body," subsequently mastering the "Innate Qi" and transforming that Qi into Internal Breath.

The reason An Jing was able to crush the other disciples was precisely because his "Body" and "Heart" had long since passed their trials. While his "Technique" had not yet reached perfection, he was still ahead of the others in progress.

And this Technique was not just about the skills in one's hands; it was also about one's understanding of their own flesh, acupoints, and internal organs—if one could not even identify their own extraordinary meridians, understand the major acupoints of the circulation, or distinguish the five viscera and six bowels, how could they possibly manipulate the Innate Qi and achieve Internal Breath?

This is why Xuanming Manor had always taught its disciples to read and write: to practice martial arts, one must also be cultured.

The mental cultivation method taught by Xuanming Manor was called the Linyuan Qi-Nurturing Stake. It required one to stand on a stake while blindfolded, visualizing a deep, dark abyss, controlling the muscles and organs of the entire body, remaining fearless, motionless, unmoving, and composed.

Although it was not considered a high-level mental cultivation method, it was still far more complete than the crude methods passed down by many martial families; it could nurture Qi, focus the spirit, and smelt the body's energy.

The martial art taught was called the Armor-Piercing True Energy. In essence, it was merely a technique for channeling force, but it was a superior martial art—or at least a part of one—that even surprised An Jing.

The Armor-Piercing True Energy was, in fact, the force-projection chapter of a top-tier orthodox lineage.

It required the heart to harmonize with the energy; the more courageous one was, the more one pressed forward without hesitation, the greater the force released in that instant. If brought to great completion, its power would be sufficient to pierce armor and snap steel.

If fully mastered, it could even be used to break through to "Internal Breath."

The Linyuan Qi-Nurturing Stake and the Armor-Piercing True Energy were both martial arts and mental methods designed to cultivate a "courageous and resolute spirit." They emphasized a single flow of energy and explosive power, representing a path of life-and-death struggle and trading life for life.

Combined with the very name "Xuanming Manor," An Jing could basically conclude that this place was highly likely a training base for assassins and death-sworn warriors cultivated by some major power or sect.

Although he had suspected this before, he was far more certain now.

For An Jing, the Linyuan Qi-Nurturing Stake was very easy. During the year he spent fleeing, he had experienced life and death several times; he had essentially been walking on the edge of an abyss with every step, so his mindset was perfectly suited for it, and he mastered it completely very quickly.

The other Children of Calamity were the same; they mastered this mental method very quickly, with only a few who were slower at reading needing others to explain it to them so they could understand.

Perhaps this was a mental method specifically provided for these "surviving refugees."

As for the Armor-Piercing True Energy, it was much harder.

An Jing learned it quite quickly; soon, he could use various weapons to execute it smoothly, instantly exploding with force forty to fifty percent higher than usual. However, very few people could keep up with his progress, and most had not even reached the entry level.

As the head disciple, An Jing was willing to help the other children solve some of their troubles.

For instance, he offered suggestions on training, methods to alleviate fatigue, and explanations of insights into martial arts, which were often more detailed than those provided by some of the instructors.

Under his guidance, Zhang Ying, Gu Yeqi, Cang Linzu, and others quickly mastered the mental method, and Cang Linzu and a few others with better aptitude even mastered the Armor-Piercing True Energy.

Although the others had not mastered it, they each had their own realizations. Knowing that An Jing had not lied to them or kept secrets, and that he had truly shared his own experience, they felt grateful, and trust gradually grew.

From then on, many children were even willing to seek him out to pour out their troubles—mostly the whimsical thoughts and sensitive heartaches peculiar to children around puberty, missing their hometowns and parents, or feeling that they were merely specks of dust.

An Jing felt quite helpless, but he was still willing to listen patiently and provide answers and comfort from the perspective of an older brother.

In this way, not only the children in his own dormitory but also those in other dormitories, regardless of gender, began to respect An Jing from the bottom of their hearts, viewing him as an elder brother.

Being respected and loved by others was indeed a happy thing.

Furthermore, teaching others required a deeper understanding of the knowledge he was explaining.

In the process of teaching, An Jing discovered that his understanding of martial arts might have relied too much on talent, allowing him to learn by instinct, but his specific train of thought was not clear.

The process of explaining to his junior brothers and sisters was also a process of reviewing the key points, thoroughly mastering these mental methods and martial arts, and moving from "proficient" to "thoroughly integrated."

However, it was also during this period that Xuanming Manor sent away the first batch of those who had been eliminated.

"A portion of the people did not meet the requirements of our Xuanming Manor and were eliminated during the drills of the past half-month."

This was the explanation given by a physician from the Medicine Pavilion one morning in response to everyone's questions.

Thirty people were missing from the entire Xuanming Manor—not many, not few, enough for everyone to notice, but not enough to cause too much surprise.

Most of those eliminated were children who lacked physical strength or were very slow in their martial arts progress. This made perfect sense and aligned with the imagination of the vast majority.

Their elimination was considered a matter of course; neither the others nor the children themselves likely found it strange.

An Jing felt the same.

However, with his keen observational skills, he unexpectedly discovered something odd.

It wasn't exactly odd... it was just that, on the day those children were eliminated, An Jing did not remember hearing the sound of vehicles leaving the manor.

Xuanming Manor was located deep in the mountains and forests. Every few days, cargo trucks would transport supplies. If people were to leave, they would most likely leave by truck.

But there were no trucks coming or going in the days before or after, and those eliminated children were not seen within the manor.

However, this was not a major issue.

Although he had initially been somewhat suspicious of the reliability of Xuanming Manor, An Jing had personally experienced the treatment provided by the manor over this recent period—there was meat to eat and he could eat his fill; compared to the chaotic times in the Northern Frontier, this place was practically heaven.

The various instructors and lecturers were a bit strict, but generally speaking, they were quite good to them.

An Jing also got along well with a few of the instructors; they would even bring small snacks to share with the children, and while they were stern during normal hours, they would tell the children stories about their own training days during breaks.

Because of this, An Jing did not take the matter to heart.

After all, they hadn't even seen those five children who had appeared at the very beginning and might have already awakened their destiny.

Xuanming Manor was very large and had many restricted areas that were off-limits; those five children were likely living in other parts of the manor, and the children who had been eliminated were probably waiting in other areas as well.

Unknowingly, another half a month passed by.