Qi Absorbing Art Actively Evolves

Li Yibing had been thinking today that Lu Chong's cultivation was lagging behind; he never imagined the kid would break through in the blink of an eye.

An eighteen-year-old Martial Artist—this was truly the strength of a top scholar.

At the very least, he now possessed the qualifications to compete for the provincial top scholar title.

Principal Fang landed in front of Lu Chong and faced the approaching instructors, saying, "Instructor Cheng, please seal off this area. Do not let anyone disturb him."

"Also, keep Lu Chong's breakthrough a secret for the time being."

Instructor Cheng nodded solemnly and issued a series of orders, splitting up with the other instructors to lead the surrounding soldiers away, leaving a quiet space for Lu Chong.

Breaking through to become a Martial Artist was a major event that allowed for no interference; even he hadn't expected Lu Chong to break through so casually.

As for the matter of secrecy, it was hardly a challenge for these soldiers who lived by strict discipline.

Once the soldiers within a hundred-meter radius of Lu Chong had all retreated, Principal Fang looked at Lu Chong, who was standing in place with an expression of pure enjoyment, and said helplessly, "Kid, can you be a bit more serious?"

"This is a breakthrough to Martial Artist, not eating or drinking. You could have at least given me a heads-up."

"If something had gone wrong, how would I answer to Old Wei when I get back?"

While speaking, Principal Fang took a high-grade nutrition bar from his pocket. "Take this as a backup, sit cross-legged, and circulate your Qi Absorbing Art."

Lu Chong gratefully accepted the nutrition bar, which he usually couldn't afford, and sat cross-legged, thinking to himself, Is it really that dangerous? Didn't I just break through as naturally as water flowing?

From 99% to 100%, it seemed there really wasn't any bottleneck for him, nor was there much of a reaction.

Oh, right, there was a notification earlier: The Qi Absorbing Art has accumulated sand into a tower and is about to break through a major threshold.

That was all!

Of course, Lu Chong couldn't tell Principal Fang these things.

He simply sat down as instructed, took a bite of the energy-dense high-grade nutrition bar, and began to actively circulate the Qi Absorbing Art.

Only then did Lu Chong feel a slight difference.

Previously, when he practiced the Qi Absorbing Art, he could only extract energy from the food he ingested, especially nutrition supplements, to strengthen his body.

But now, he made a new discovery: he seemed to be able to sense the free-floating Qi outside his body.

Moreover, he could use the Qi Absorbing Art to absorb this Qi into his body, merging it with the energy from the nutrition supplements into every part of his flesh and blood.

Principal Fang's voice echoed in his mind again, "Continue your cultivation to stabilize; I will speak, and you listen."

"You should be able to feel it now; you can already absorb the free-floating Qi between heaven and earth."

"This is something we humans discovered within Exotic Beasts after the Cataclysm. This Qi is called Origin Energy, the source of all energy."

"It is invisible and intangible, yet it truly exists."

"There is Origin Energy in nutrition supplements, there is free-floating Origin Energy in the world, and it even exists in the vastness of space."

"It is precisely through the Qi Absorbing Art, which has been popularized to every household, that we can sense this invisible Origin Energy and subsequently strengthen our bodies, reviving the glory of the ancient martial artists."

"Under conditions where technological means are suppressed, only by reviving ancient martial artists can we humans face those mutated Fierce Beasts and establish our own survival bases."

"Of course, as things have developed, we have also created many Origin Energy weapons, including the Energy Light Walls you have seen in the Hunting Grounds and the Fortress."

Principal Fang continued, "Back to cultivation."

"Before becoming a Martial Artist, one cannot sense the free-floating Origin Energy outside the body."

"Therefore, during the Martial Disciple stage, we can only absorb Origin Energy through nutrition supplements to strengthen the body."

"Only when our bodies reach a critical point can we form a special resonance with the external Origin Energy and absorb it into our bodies. This is what it means to be a Martial Artist."

"Of course, the free-floating Origin Energy is very thin in most places, so to accelerate the accumulation of Origin Energy, the assistance of nutrition supplements is still necessary."

"Let's talk about the evolution of Origin Energy within our bodies."

"When it accumulates to a certain level within the body—which is when you break through to become a Martial Artist—Origin Energy is no longer just simply merging into your muscles, bones, and internal organs."

"At this point, the invisible Origin Energy will catalyze the birth of tangible Qi and Blood within the Martial Artist's body. While continuing to strengthen the physique, it can also be released externally to become Gang Qi."

"Although the Qi and Blood will dissipate after leaving the body, and its power will weaken as distance and time increase, it remains a means of long-range attack."

"And this method of using externalized Qi and Blood to injure enemies is the primary characteristic of Earth-Rank Martial Skills."

"Earth-Rank Martial Skills can be used for both close combat and long-range attacks; their power is naturally greater than Human-Rank Martial Skills, but they also consume more Qi, Blood, and physical stamina."

"Therefore, do not abandon your Human-Rank Martial Skills; they can help you conserve stamina when facing ordinary opponents."

"At the same time, the difficulty of mastering Earth-Rank Martial Skills is far higher than that of Human-Rank Martial Skills. The vast majority of Martial Artists can only study one or two Earth-Rank Martial Skills in their entire lives."

"Earth-Rank Martial Skills are also rarer and more expensive; very few people can create their own, and most are discovered or deduced from Ancient Martial Ruins."

"As for the higher-level Heaven-Rank Martial Skills, it goes without saying; there are fewer than twenty in existence across all of Huaxia, and more than half of those are incomplete."

"The breakthrough to Martial Artist is a critical juncture; it is your first transformation of Origin Energy, catalyzing your Qi and Blood."

"So, kid, do your best to absorb as much as you can. This is your foundation and your potential for the future."

Principal Fang added with emphasis, "Don't worry, there is plenty of nutrition."

Lu Chong kept all these words in his heart; they had been taught in his theory classes as well.

What he focused on most was Principal Fang's last sentence: plenty of nutrition? That was truly great.

At this moment, a notification sound rang out in his mind simultaneously—

"Qi Absorbing Art has evolved; efficiency and potential have doubled."

"Qi Absorbing Art is famished and lacking momentum; Master, please replenish energy as soon as possible."

Lu Chong realized that this was likely what Principal Fang called foundation and heritage—it was his own stroke of fortune.

What truly surprised him was that his Qi Absorbing Art had evolved along with it, becoming different from the Qi Absorbing Art of ordinary people.

To say nothing else, he felt that his speed of absorbing Origin Energy was much faster; his body was like a high-powered converter, constantly using Origin Energy to catalyze new blood and energy, which flowed through his limbs and bones.

Lu Chong could even clearly feel his bodily functions constantly strengthening.

Hungry?

Eat!

Principal Fang was footing the bill anyway.

Without hesitation, Lu Chong stuffed the remaining half of the high-grade Nutrition Bar in his hand into his mouth.

A single high-grade Nutrition Bar cost one hundred thousand on the market, but Lu Chong didn't feel a shred of heartache right now.

However, in less than a minute, Lu Chong felt his body was depleted once again; the Origin Energy from the Nutrition Bar had been completely consumed.

Principal Fang was still chattering away, imparting his experience, when he suddenly noticed Lu Chong open his eyes and look at him. "Principal Fang, I'm hungry."

Principal Fang's voice paused, and he hurriedly took another high-grade Nutrition Bar from his pocket and handed it over.

"Eat slowly, be careful not to choke," Principal Fang reminded him, not forgetting to add a word of caution.

He didn't feel any heartache; instead, Principal Fang felt secretly satisfied. This kid was indeed much faster than the average person during his first absorption, and his requirements were greater as well.

This is a good thing; it shows his foundation is more robust.

Principal Fang thought to himself that for an ordinary person breaking through to become a Martial Artist, two high-grade Nutrition Bars were usually enough.

This kid will top out at three at most; I, Old Fang, still have that much in resources.

Yet, no sooner had he finished that thought than he saw Lu Chong open his eyes again, looking at him with a famished gaze.

"So fast?" Principal Fang was somewhat surprised. Logically, the absorption speed should have slowed down by the second bar.

However, he didn't hesitate and handed the third Nutrition Bar to Lu Chong.

It was true that Lu Chong's speed in absorbing the Nutrition Bar had slowed down slightly.

Two minutes later, he reached out his hand toward Principal Fang again.

"Still want more?" Principal Fang was slightly stunned, but he took one out anyway.

That was the fourth one!

This time, he stared intently at Lu Chong, watching with his own eyes as he ate the entire Nutrition Bar, rather than secretly hiding it away.

Patting his pocket, Principal Fang discovered he only had one left in reserve.

That should be enough, right? It's already been four bars. Principal Fang started to feel a bit of heartache; that was four hundred thousand right there.

But before he could even blink, Lu Chong opened his eyes again and reached out his hand.

Taking the last Nutrition Bar from Principal Fang's hand, Lu Chong even found time to flash a smile. "Thank you, Principal Fang."

"Damn it!" Principal Fang couldn't help but curse under his breath. "I wonder if I should get Old Wei to reimburse this."

Heartache aside, Principal Fang didn't dare delay; he hurriedly sought outside assistance, telling Instructor Cheng and the others to quickly scrape together more Nutrition Bars.

"Eat, keep eating! I refuse to believe I can't fill you up, you brat."