Aperture Opening

"For a person, their acupoints are like the stars of the heavens, yet their physical body is bound by nine shackles in relation to the world."

"By burning one's qi and blood into an internal fire to melt the first shackle, one can open the Sea of Qi and the Snow Mountain. Once the Sea of Qi is opened and the Snow Mountain melted, a person's innate primordial qi can communicate with the heavens and the earth. This is known as Aperture Opening."

"However, the strength of these shackles is enough to make anyone shrink back in fear. To burn through this first shackle, those with weak qi and blood may use another's true essence as fuel to strengthen their internal fire, while those with abundant qi and blood can ignite the fire themselves."

"Once the internal fire is ignited, if there is no true essence infused into the body, it will continue to burn until the qi and blood are exhausted. The process of blood-refining to reach Aperture Opening is unimaginably dangerous if there is no martial artist who has already achieved Aperture Opening standing guard nearby."

"If you ever reach this step in the future, do not be impatient for success; you must find someone to protect you."

The words Chief Clerk Sun had spoken to resolve Chen Zhuo's doubts flowed through his mind like a stream.

"Nine shackles. Blood-refining to reach Aperture Opening is the first shackle."

"Then..."

Chen Zhuo pondered to himself, "How does one ignite the internal fire?"

He continued to feel the burning sensation on his body, thinking of how the medicinal soup in the pool had become scalding due to the addition of the Demon Blood, and recalling how, at the dawn of time, the first spark of fire had come to be.

Chen Zhuo began to consciously guide his qi and blood.

Faster!

Faster still!

Following his will, the qi and blood throughout his body gradually began to flow at high speed, constantly converging around his Sea of Qi.

Rotating.

Compressing.

Friction.

Unknowingly, beads of sweat began to seep from his forehead, dripping one by one into the medicinal soup.

"Drip."

"Drip."

"Drip."

His body was heating up, and a wave of heat seemed to surge within him, rising higher and higher with the convergence of his qi and blood.

Suddenly, the rolling heat reached a critical point, and an intense burning sensation emerged, causing Chen Zhuo's entire body to tremble as if every one of his forty-eight thousand pores had opened to their widest extent.

Because of this, the soup in the pool boiled even more violently.

The internal fire was born, and the shackle broke.

But this was a slow, grinding process.

"Chief Clerk Sun didn't say it would be this painful. Son of a bitch, he held something back."

Chen Zhuo gritted his teeth, enduring the excruciating pain.

Pain!

The internal fire burned away his distracting thoughts; at this moment, he had only one thought in his mind.

Break through to Aperture Opening, snap the shackle, and be reborn.

He did not know how much time had passed, but under the searing heat of the internal fire, Chen Zhuo's spirit began to drift.

He felt as if he had returned to that snow-capped mountain, surrounded by endless ice and cold, making him want to curl up.

So cold!

His consciousness began to sink.

Until a "crack" sounded from within his body, and the shackle shattered completely.

Chen Zhuo's eyes snapped open.

The Sea of Qi opened wide, and the Snow Mountain melted.

A vast amount of innate primordial qi poured into the Sea of Qi as the Snow Mountain melted, transforming into true essence.

Having reached this stage, the journey of Aperture Opening was more than halfway complete.

What remained was only to communicate with the primordial qi of heaven and earth.

For Chen Zhuo, this final step was the simplest of all.

"Minor Heavenly Cycle Qi Circulation Method."

As the thought crossed Chen Zhuo's mind, his body began to circulate his true essence instinctively.

Starting from the Sea of Qi, it flowed through the major and minor meridians, reaching the very extremities.

During this process, the primordial qi between heaven and earth seemed to be drawn in, constantly drilling through his pores and merging with his true essence.

The true essence completed a full cycle through his body, not only extinguishing the raging internal fire but also growing significantly stronger before returning to the Sea of Qi.

"Aperture Opening, complete."

Having endured the agony, Chen Zhuo had finally become a second-realm martial artist.

He had also become one of the few top-tier martial arts experts in all of Baiyun County.

The temperature of his body gradually dropped, and the medicinal soup in the pool was no longer scalding, becoming somewhat diluted.

[Realm: Aperture Opening (First Stage)]

[Training Method: Dragon-Roar Iron Cloth Shirt: 50/80 (Not yet initiated) (Blood Exchange: 1)]

[Training Method: Minor Heavenly Cycle Qi Circulation Method: 1/80 (Not yet initiated)]

The Minor Heavenly Cycle Qi Circulation Method didn't receive a boost because the first-stage Demon Blood contains only vitality and blood, not primordial energy.

Chen Zhuo glanced at the panel, then extended a finger, his gaze fixed on the wisp of white mist at its tip.

That white mist was True Essence.

Chen Zhuo pondered for a moment and sighed softly, "If I want to boost the progress of the Minor Heavenly Cycle Qi Circulation Method, it seems I can only use second-stage Demon Blood."

But second-stage demon beasts...

He felt a headache coming on.

It was no wonder the Sun Family and the Huang Family had both set their sights on the third-stage demon beast in Dangyun Mountain.

In the entire Baiyun County, there had likely been very few second-stage demon beasts over the years.

However, even if I improve steadily, I can still progress faster than others. Catching up to and even surpassing Chief Clerk Sun or Huang Tianhe is only a matter of time.

Putting thoughts of demon beasts aside for the moment, Chen Zhuo noticed the color of the soup. After a brief thought, he closed his eyes again.

He couldn't let it go to waste.

From this moment on, his advantage in the martial path became even more pronounced.

It was not just because he could improve continuously by following the steps without hitting any bottlenecks, nor because his foundation was more solid than anyone else's.

It was because, with all techniques manifesting naturally, he could continue to advance in every realm without end.

As long as he lived well, one day, he would be able to sweep across the world with nothing but the purest strength of his physical body.

The road may be long, but if one keeps walking, one will eventually arrive...

[Iron Cloth Shirt +10]

[Minor Heavenly Cycle Qi Circulation Method +1]

In the blink of an eye, it was noon.

The kitchen became busy, day after day.

The new fat cook was quick-handed and didn't talk much, so he was soon accepted by the kitchen staff.

Everything ran as usual, only missing the figure of Chen Zhuo.

In the small courtyard next to the kitchen, the door of the training room opened, and a handsome young man with a slender build stepped out.

Chen Zhuo had a long blade strapped to his waist; as he walked, he moved with the grace and agility of a dragon playing in the water.

The sunlight hit his face, outlining his chiseled features.

He narrowed his eyes slightly and looked around, feeling as if the whole world had become different.

The chirping of birds in the distance, the buzzing of insects, and the rustling of the breeze through the leaves were all clearly audible.

Chen Zhuo first went to the room next door to offer incense to his master and senior brother, then went to check on Yan Ming's room.

He didn't go in, only taking a glance through the window.

At this hour, there's no need to go to the kitchen. Since I have plenty of energy, I might as well practice my blade technique.

With a thought, Chen Zhuo strode toward the center of the courtyard, drawing his blade as he moved.

By the time he stood still, the long blade was already unsheathed.

He did not use his True Essence, but instead performed the Zhengyang Blade Technique using only his physical strength.

This was his first time drawing his blade since breaking through.

Even without using True Essence, his blade technique was incomparable to before.

It wasn't that his technique had improved, but rather that he himself was vastly different from before.

[Zhengyang Blade Technique +1]

[Zhengyang Blade Technique +1]

The Zhengyang Blade Technique was inherently fierce and powerful. Although he wasn't performing it at full strength, he still captured its essence.

With every move and every strike of the blade, it seemed as if the very air couldn't withstand it, constantly emitting a low roar.

A short while later.

Under his practice, the Zhengyang Blade Technique finally reached the initiation level.

[Combat Method: Zhengyang Blade Technique: 7/40 (Initiated)]

It wasn't that he didn't want to continue practicing, but someone was already approaching the gate of the small courtyard.

Chen Zhuo sheathed his blade and slowly turned his head to see a sturdy silhouette drawing closer to the courtyard gate.

"Fatty Sun is starting to feel more and more like Chief Clerk Sun."

Chen Zhuo smiled and walked up to greet him.

"Brother Sun, won't you come in and sit for a while?"

Chen Zhuo reached the gate, intending to invite him in for tea and a chat, but Fatty Sun waved him off.

"There will be plenty of time for tea later. Today, there is a major matter at hand, and you must come with me."