With a significant investment of time, Fang Han's Internal Qi increased rapidly at a rate visible to the naked eye.
The Dark Green Internal Qi within the Yongquan Acupoint rapidly increased from 95% to 96%, 97%, 98%...
At the end of each cycle, a new flow of Internal Qi enters it, making it more abundant and solid.
Three days later, late at night.
The candlelight flickered in the Quiet Room, and the smoke in the Sandalwood Incense burner had long since burned out, leaving only a thin layer of cold ash.
Fang Han sat cross-legged on a futon, the faint light of the Starry Ink Jade in front of him illuminating his handsome face.
As another cycle of Internal Qi flows into the Yongquan Acupoint.
"Buzz..."
A slight tremor, perceptible only to Fang Han, emanated from his Yongquan Acupoint.
This acupoint was finally completely filled at this moment, with no gaps left.
The overflowing Internal Qi spontaneously surged towards the next Acupoints — the Shenque Acupoint.
An invisible yet incredibly strong barrier suddenly appeared, like a transparent wall, firmly blocking the flowing Internal Qi from the outside.
"We've hit the bottleneck of the First Grade Late Stage."
Fang Han's heart stirred slightly, but he remained completely unmoved.
With his current 512-fold increase in Root Bone Talent, he is even more talented than Qin Yuan, Chu Jinghong, and Lin Qingyin. The bottleneck of the First Grade Late Stage is just a slightly thicker piece of paper for him.
He continued to circulate his cultivation technique, and the Dark Green Internal Qi within his body began to compress and condense. Following the breakthrough method of the < Greenwood Poison-Avoidance Scripture >, he fiercely attacked the barrier outside the Shenque Acupoint.
"Boom--"
The barrier trembled violently upon the very first impact, sending ripples spreading outwards.
Fang Han remained calm, guiding his Internal Qi to strike repeatedly at a stable frequency.
The medicinal power of the Earth Spirit Pill was rapidly consumed in this high-intensity impact, transforming into waves of powerful Internal Qi.
"Click--"
About half an incense stick later, a crisp cracking sound rang out in Fang Han's perception.
The invisible barrier blocking the Shenque Acupoint shattered instantly.
The pent-up Internal Qi, like a flood bursting its banks, surged joyfully into the newly opened Shenque Acupoint.
"Boom--!"
In an instant, Fang Han Han's aura surged wildly like a volcanic eruption.
The aura was so strong that it far surpassed the Mid First Grade, stirring up an invisible wave of energy in the Quiet Room and scattering several thin sheets of paper on the table.
The window frames vibrated and hummed from the shockwave, and even the walls seemed to tremble slightly for a moment.
Including the Shenque Acupoint, there are 27 interconnected Acupoints that form an unprecedentedly complex Internal Qi circulation system.
The speed and volume of the Internal Qi flow increased dramatically, its color became deeper, its texture became more viscous, and the sense of power it brought with its flow far exceeded that of before.
" First Grade Late Stage, accomplished."
Fang Han slowly opened his eyes, a glint of Dark Green light swirling within them before slowly receding.
He did not rush to get up, but instead focused his mind on the newly opened Shenque Acupoint, sensing the newly opened Divine Treasury.
A moment later, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.
"Spontaneous circulation of Internal Qi?"
This Divine Treasury granted him an extremely useful ability: his Internal Qi could spontaneously circulate and flow through his meridians.
It was as if he had an ever-burning assistant in his body; even when he wasn't cultivating, his Internal Qi would circulate on its own in a continuous cycle.
Although the speed of this spontaneous cycle is far less rapid than that of active cultivation, its advantage lies in its continuous nature.
This means that even if he doesn't cultivate, the Internal Qi he consumes will recover on its own over time, although the recovery speed will be slower.
After breaking through to the First Grade Late Stage, his Internal Qi increased dramatically. Now, with the spontaneous circulation of Internal Qi, the consumed Internal Qi can be replenished spontaneously.
The anxiety caused by insufficient Internal Qi can be greatly relieved.
"They've caught up with Qin Yuan and his two companions!"
Fang Han sat cross-legged on the futon, feeling the immense and vast Internal Qi within his body, far surpassing that of Mid First Grade, and a smile appeared on his lips.
First Grade Late Stage.
Reaching this level means that his cultivation has finally caught up with Qin Yuan, Chu Jinghong, and Lin Qingyin, the three most recognized young talents.
That defeat at the Martial Arts Tournament was his first loss since he began practicing martial arts, and it left a deep impression on him.
Because the three were significantly older than him, their cultivation levels were far superior to his.
With a 512-fold increase in his Root Bone Talent, making him even stronger than the three of them, he finally caught up with them.
As for their actual combat strength, it has already surpassed that of the three of them.
"What's this?"
Suppressing his joy at breaking through his cultivation level, Fang Han did not rush to leave the Quiet Room.
He could clearly feel that something deep within his body was stirred the instant his cultivation broke through to the First Grade Late Stage.
It was an invisible and intangible barrier, yet it truly existed.
It lies deep within his body, unseen and intangible.
Like an extremely tough membrane, or a door, it firmly locks something in, preventing it from spilling out.
Breaking it will inevitably bring about earth-shattering changes.
"It must be... the physical barrier!"
Fang Han quickly made a judgment in his mind.
The Black Tortoise True Art manual records that when this master-level Horizontal Training technique is mastered to the point of the Proficiency Realm and the cultivation reaches the First Grade Late Stage, it will spontaneously break through the "essence" barrier, one of the three barriers of essence, qi, and spirit, which is the barrier of the physical body.
Having already Proficiency Realm the < Black Tortoise True Art >, and now that his cultivation has reached the First Grade Late Stage, he has met the final requirement, and the previously hidden physical barriers have naturally become apparent.
"Boom--!"
Fang Han took a deep breath, focused his mind on his body, and locked onto that invisible yet real barrier.
Then, using the methods recorded in the < Black Tortoise True Art >, he guided the Internal Qi of his entire body and fiercely charged towards that barrier.
"Click--"
A faint yet crystal-clear cracking sound rang out from deep within the body.
The sound was like ice cracking in spring, or like a cicada hatching from its chrysalis.
Fang Han didn't even have time to experience the details of the breakthrough before the barrier shattered.
Unbelievably fast, unbelievably easy.
For ordinary First Grade Late Stage martial artists, breaking through the physical barrier is extremely difficult and requires years of honing their skills and countless attempts before they have even a sliver of a chance to succeed.
However, for Fang Han, who had already Proficiency Realm the Black Tortoise True Art, this obstacle was as fragile as a thin sheet of paper.
What he lacks is simply the catalyst of reaching the First Grade Late Stage.
At this moment, the trigger is triggered, and the barrier is broken by itself.
"Boom--!"
The moment the barrier shattered, Fang Han Han's blood and qi surged as if ignited.
The vast but scattered, powerful blood and qi that had been dormant deep within the body and was difficult to mobilize like Internal Qi underwent a tremendous transformation at this moment.
The qi and blood, which were originally in a gaseous state and dispersed throughout the limbs and bones, were frantically compressed and condensed.
It was as if an invisible hand was gripping them together, kneading and squeezing them forcefully.
It transforms from a gaseous state to a liquid state.
It is as viscous as mercury and as heavy as lead.
Fang Han could clearly "see" those liquid blood and qi flowing slowly outside the meridians and within the flesh.
Like rivers of dark red lava, they construct a completely new system within the body, distinct from the Internal Qi circulation yet resonating with it.
But that's not the biggest change.
The biggest change lies in control.
Previously, although he possessed a vast amount of vital energy, it was like a pile of loose sand, difficult to mobilize and even more difficult to use in battle.
But at this moment, these liquid blood and qi seemed to be given life, as if they were limbs to be commanded, and could be used at will.
With a slight thought, the liquid blood and qi that had been dormant throughout his body surged forth like rivers flowing into the sea, flowing freely to any part of his body that he wished to strengthen.
"Buzz--"
Fang Han tried to channel his qi and blood into his arms.
Dark red liquid blood and qi surged in like a tide, seeping into every inch of muscle, every bone, and every fascia in both arms.
In an instant, he felt as if his arms had been encased in an invisible layer of steel armor.
The feeling of being filled with power was many times stronger than before.
He clenched his fist lightly, his knuckles cracking crisply, and the air around his fist rippled visible to the naked eye from the sheer force of his grip.
"Combat strength will increase by at least ten times."
Fang Han slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, his eyes gleaming with a sharp light.
With the support of liquid blood and qi, his physical strength will surge, and his overall combat power will increase by at least tenfold.
No wonder that with each First Barrier Breakthrough in the three stages of essence, energy, and spirit, one's strength increases more than tenfold.
"Whoosh--"
Fang Han withdrew his qi and blood from his arm and then tried to channel it into his body.
Liquid blood and qi surged to his chest, abdomen, back, and ribs, forming a thin, dark red film barely visible to the naked eye beneath his skin.
The thin film, though seemingly light, carried an indescribable sense of weight and solidity, as if one were wearing an invisible suit of armor.
"Even ordinary grandmasters would find it difficult to harm."
Fang Han looked down at his skin, which had a faint reddish sheen, and made a judgment in his mind.
His mastery of the Black Tortoise True Art Proficiency Realm gave him a defense that was difficult to injure below the level of a Grandmaster, and now, with the support of his Qi and blood, his defensive power surged once again.
It would be very difficult for an ordinary grandmaster to harm him; he already possessed a formidable physical defense that was difficult for an ordinary grandmaster to damage.
"My current strength?"
Fang Han assessed his rapidly increasing strength.
Once his cultivation level broke through to the First Grade Late Stage, the increase in both the total amount and quality of his Internal Qi was enough to multiply his combat power several times over.
Breaking through the physical barrier and gaining the blessing of liquid blood and qi further enhances combat power by more than tenfold.
With the two combined, his combat power has increased at least several dozen times. Even if he is not as good as a veteran grandmaster, he is definitely not much worse.
"Now, even a veteran grandmaster like myself is not someone I can't afford to challenge..."
The heavy weight in Fang Han's heart suddenly lightened at that moment.
Previously, Li Hanjiang, a veteran grandmaster who had been at the grandmaster level for decades, was like a sword hanging over his head, putting him under considerable pressure.
Now, though the sword still exists, it is no longer deadly.
Even if Li Hanjiang disregarded the Supreme Elder's warning and took the risk of attacking him, he was not without the ability to fight back.
If the opponent is even slightly careless, they might even be injured in return.