"Martial Way," Internal and External Unite: Body Tempering Method

Time flies like an arrow, and the years pass like a shuttle.

In the blink of an eye, half a year had gone by.

Shrek City, the backyard of Ping'an Pharmacy.

The afternoon sun slanted down from above the courtyard wall, painting the blue-brick ground in a layer of warm gold. The cluster of emerald bamboo in the corner rustled in the breeze, casting dappled, flickering shadows.

In the spacious yard, a petite figure stood in the center.

It was Xiao Xiao.

Her ink-green hair was tied into a neat ponytail at the back of her head. She wore a light cyan short-sleeved top, tailored to fit perfectly and outline her slender waist.

She wore a dark-colored skirt designed for movement, revealing her bare, slender legs and a pair of lightweight, soft-soled cloth shoes.

Half a year had passed, and while Xiao Xiao's frame remained petite, the frailty of the past was gone.

Her small body now radiated a sense of carefully honed symmetry; every inch was just right, possessing both the softness of a young girl and the resilience expected of a soul master.

At this moment, a small, pitch-black cauldron hovered and slowly rotated above Xiao Xiao's head.

"Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron."

The cauldron, engraved with intricate inscriptions, vibrated incessantly. Circles of black ripples expanded from its body, carrying a heavy suppressive force like an invisible mountain, pressing down relentlessly upon Xiao Xiao!

Yet, Xiao Xiao did not retreat in the slightest. Her delicate face was set in concentration, her emerald eyes reflecting the sunlight with focused intensity as she gritted her teeth and held her ground.

Beads of sweat rolled down her cheeks and skin, dripping onto the blue bricks and leaving small, dark marks.

Xiao Xiao remained meticulous, unaffected by the strain. She stood in a horse stance, her legs firmly planted on the ground, her center of gravity lowered, knees slightly bent, and back straight.

Her hands moved in a rhythmic push-and-pull, neither fast nor slow. Every motion was clean and precise, without a hint of unnecessary wavering.

Under the weight of the immense pressure, Xiao Xiao's breathing was long and steady. Each breath synchronized perfectly with her movements, as if they were gears meshing together in seamless, mechanical precision.

Jiang Ci'an stood nearby.

He sat with his arms crossed, his golden pupils glowing faintly as he watched every one of Xiao Xiao's movements without blinking.

Under his "Perspective," Xiao Xiao's body was like an illuminated map, with nothing left hidden.

He could clearly see the contraction and relaxation of her muscles with every movement, and the way the energy of heaven and earth surged into her body with every breath. He could see her soul power circulating slowly along specific meridian pathways.

These routes were vastly different from traditional meditation methods. While they still used the dantian as the core and the Ren and Du meridians as the framework, they were more dispersed and intricate, spreading into every corner of her limbs and bones.

Wherever the soul power flowed, her muscles trembled slightly, her bones hummed softly, and her fascia stretched, subtly nourishing her body bit by bit.

And this was only the beginning.

This special method of exercise and breathing was also absorbing the energy of heaven and earth.

As the energy entered her body with each breath, it naturally converted into soul power, circulating through her meridians to nourish her physique.

In turn, a stronger body absorbed even more energy from heaven and earth, converting it into greater soul power and raising her cultivation level.

The two complemented each other, simultaneously tempering Xiao Xiao's body and increasing her cultivation with remarkable efficiency.

This was no longer just physical training; it was meditation performed while training the body, and with even higher efficiency!

This was the version he had finally managed to create after half a year of countless failures in the virtual world, having watched Tang San explode into a bloody mist hundreds of times over.

He called it:

--"Martial Way."

Jiang Ci'an had originally wanted to call it "Body Cultivation," but he later realized that name was inaccurate.

In his understanding, body cultivation was a path that focused on the physical body while neglecting energy.

His "Martial Way," however, was not like that.

The "Martial Way" cultivated both the internal and the external.

Just like Xiao Xiao, who was training right now.

Under the pressure of the Soul-Suppressing Cauldron, every move Xiao Xiao made served to temper her body, while simultaneously, through the pressure and the special breathing technique, she refined her internal soul power, pushing her cultivation forward bit by bit.

The two processes ran in parallel, perfectly harmonious, and the efficiency was not a whit inferior to normal seated meditation!

To put it into perspective: if the efficiency of a standard meditation method was 1, then practicing the Mysterious Heaven Skill might raise that efficiency to between 1.2 and 1.4.

But this "Martial Way" training reached 1.5 times the efficiency!

And it came with the added benefit of strengthening the physique.

There was no doubt that this technique, which he named the "Body Tempering Method," was a true integration of internal and external, a mutually reinforcing path that could significantly accelerate one's cultivation speed!

This could be considered the introductory practice for the "Martial Way" he had envisioned.

To construct the "Body Tempering Method," Jiang Ci'an had spent more time in the virtual world than in reality for a period, only managing to successfully build it three months ago.

At that time, the "Body Tempering Method" only had an efficiency of 1.1 to 1.2—barely better than ordinary meditation, and likely inferior to the advanced meditation techniques refined over generations by major powers.

Fortunately, the beginning was the hardest part. Once the basic framework was established, subsequent improvements were much easier.

Following the dedicated contributions of the Tang San in the virtual world, who had used his Mysterious Heaven Skill foundation to explode hundreds of times over, the "Body Tempering Method" was continuously refined until it reached its current 1.5 efficiency.

For Jiang Ci'an, this was still merely the beginning.

The framework of the "Martial Way" had only just been erected; it was far from being perfected.

Jiang Ci'an possessed enough patience and ample opportunities for trial and error to fill it in and polish it step by step, allowing it to grow into the shape he desired, and this would take time...

Time flowed slowly, and the afternoon sun grew increasingly blinding.

At a certain moment, Xiao Xiao's movements came to a halt.

She exhaled softly, then raised her hand in a beckoning gesture. The Three-Life Soul-Suppressing Cauldron above her head trembled slightly, transforming into a streak of black light that vanished into her palm.

As the black ripples dissipated and the suppressing force receded, Xiao Xiao's body visibly relaxed.

She paused for a few moments, as if waiting for the surging soul power within her to settle, before turning her head to see Jiang Ci'an watching her with a smile from the shade.

His gaze was gentle, carrying that sense of reassurance she was so familiar with.

Xiao Xiao faltered involuntarily, her eyes flickering slightly, and even the exhaustion in their depths seemed to dissipate.

Why do I suddenly want to grow up so quickly?

Xiao Xiao blinked, thinking to herself in secret.

Taking a deep breath, Xiao Xiao hurried over to Jiang Ci'an, intending to say something.

Jiang Ci'an, however, seemed prepared; he reached out to hand her a clean towel, his tone gentle.

"Tired?"

Without any pretense of strength, Xiao Xiao nodded softly, looking pitifully exhausted.

As she took the towel to wipe the sweat from her face, Xiao Xiao sat down beside Jiang Ci'an quite naturally, then leaned directly against him in a listless posture.

"I don't want to move anymore..."

Her voice was soft and sweet, yet sounded completely drained of energy.