The Enemy at the Gates

Inside the guest room, Li Su began to cultivate the moment he recovered.

Facing the impending battle, seizing every moment to grow stronger was the only way to ensure his survival.

In fact, after finishing his meal, Xuanci had also quietly returned to his own guest room and begun his own cultivation.

Hoo, hah!

The Indestructible Diamond Divine Art, first stage, second stage—it circulated in rhythm with Li Su's steady breathing.

It was no longer difficult for Li Su to circulate the second stage; in fact, he could now alternate between the first and second stages.

From the first stage all the way to the fifth, the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art was powered by the circulation of energy and the rhythm of breath.

Its difficulty lay in more than just the complexity of the cultivation itself.

In truth, the need to alternate between stages was undoubtedly even harder.

Starting from the second stage, every time a new level was mastered, it had to be linked with the previous one. With every inhalation and exhalation, the internal energy would circulate spontaneously, flowing in an endless stream to keep the body in a state of absolute indestructibility. This was no simple alternation; it meant that both stages were active simultaneously during every breath, with both types of energy generating within the body to create a stacking effect, thereby drastically increasing his defensive power.

Originally, this was not something the current Li Su should have been able to attempt.

He was supposed to wait until the second stage was perfected and his body had completely adapted to its breathing pattern before even trying.

Though he hated to admit it, actual combat was truly the best way to master a technique.

In the eyes of Wang Jiantong and the others, his clash with Li Hui might have been shocking—a testament to the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art and Li Su's mastery of it.

But for Li Su, it was not.

It was a truly, extremely dangerous battle where death was a distinct possibility.

In that instant, every nerve in Li Su's body had been stretched to its limit.

The 175% boost to his comprehension from the world's influence had erupted in full for the first time.

Yielding not an inch, fighting for every second, without a single moment to catch his breath—the five-minute, 300-second life-or-death struggle flashed before his eyes like a film reel, frame by frame.

Every blade strike had been aimed at his vitals; every strike had felt like the final one.

The pressure exerted on Li Su had been so immense that it had nearly made his blood boil, pushing his spirit to an unprecedented height.

Driven by an intense desire to survive, Li Su had cleared away nearly every distracting thought in his mind, leaving only a combat instinct that felt like pure intuition. Arhat Fist, Cotton Palm, and even the Vajra Palm and Dragon-Capturing Skill—martial arts Li Su had only ever seen before—were all synthesized and unleashed in that moment.

At that time, the situation had been so dire that Li Su hadn't even had the energy to watch his own life flash before his eyes.

Every ounce of his cognitive ability had been dedicated to dealing with Li Hui's blade.

It must be said that Li Su's luck was remarkably good.

Li Hui's strength was neither too high nor too low, placing the pressure on him exactly at that critical threshold.

It could be said that if Li Hui had been even slightly stronger, Li Su would have surely died, as he wouldn't have been able to withstand it. And if Li Hui had been weaker, he would have also surely died, as the pressure would have been insufficient to force him into that life-or-death state of total focus.

Because of that extreme and frantic pressure, with his mind operating on near-absolute instinct, the sliver of true energy Li Hui had managed to force into him—even though it only caused capillary-level damage to his internal organs—had fiercely stimulated Li Su's instincts, allowing him to successfully execute the alternating breathing technique for the first time.

Thus, whether in terms of internal energy or technique, Li Su had made a massive breakthrough by surviving.

In truth, compared to the increase of a year's worth of cultivation, the experience gained under that pressure was the greatest harvest of the battle for Li Su, even though he didn't like it at all, nor did he cherish it; if he had his way, he would never want a next time.

Thoughts aside, the benefits were real and tangible.

Especially given Li Su's current situation, which originally shouldn't have been possible.

But at this very moment, his state was undoubtedly equivalent to having mastered two stages of the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art, complete with the ability to alternate between them.

What did this mean?

It meant the pot was heated, the oil was ready, and all that was left was to toss the ingredients in to stir-fry!

In reality, even with this, Li Su's progress wouldn't have been this fast; after all, no matter how well prepared you are, it's useless without ingredients.

But as it happened, he had consumed a Great Restoration Pill when he left Shaolin Temple.

It was a pill capable of granting ten years of cultivation, and the majority of its medicinal properties were still latent within his cells.

What did this mean?

It meant he had the pot, and he had the ingredients.

Suddenly, the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art—which was notoriously difficult to cultivate, especially from the second stage onward, requiring not just talent but also an extremely high demand for true energy—seemed to have been strapped to a rocket, soaring upward in an instant.

As the two stages of the technique alternated continuously, Li Su felt with absolute clarity that the progress of his Indestructible Diamond Divine Art was accelerating.

His external strength was growing, and his internal energy was rapidly increasing.

Under the alternating rise and fall of these two forces, the medicinal power of the Great Restoration Pill absorbed by his cells was being processed at an unprecedented speed, converting into even more true energy.

He reached a point where just a few breaths were equivalent to an entire day of previous cultivation.

How astonishing, how terrifying was this?

But none of that mattered.

What mattered was that Li Su was steadily and rapidly closing the gap between himself and a true second-rate expert.

It wasn't a matter of technique or experience, but the gap in the sheer quantity of internal energy—something that could not be broken through by force and had to be accumulated slowly over time—as he gradually pushed toward ten years of cultivation.

Although, in the real world, internal energy was usually measured in sixty-year cycles.

Those who have entered a World Fragment seven times may even possess several sixty-year cycles—hundreds of years—of internal energy.

However, this does not mean that ten years of internal energy is lacking.

Inside a World Fragment.

Ten, twenty, or thirty years of internal energy represent insurmountable distances.

If the circulation of the microcosmic orbit is the standard for a second-rate expert, then ten years of internal energy is the threshold for entry.

Although those who have reached ten years of internal energy are not necessarily at the peak of the second-rate, those at the peak of the second-rate basically all possess ten or more years of internal energy.

Murong Bo, Wang Jiantong, Wang Xianglong, and even young geniuses like Ming Yulong are all at this threshold.

Li Su has been practicing for over four years, and he has been cultivating the high-quality Arhat True Qi. With his continuous practice of the Indestructible Diamond Divine Art, it has further transformed into the top-tier Indestructible Diamond True Qi.

Once he completes the ten-year mark, he will undoubtedly undergo a massive transformation, perhaps even gaining the ability to cross swords with a first-rate expert.

Perhaps some might say this is too fast—damn, it's too fast—it's only been a few years!

No, this is not fast.

To say nothing else, Li Su comes from a prestigious righteous sect. The trilogy of Arhat Fist, Arhat Divine Art, and Indestructible Diamond Divine Art were practiced step-by-step, each link interlocking with the next, added to his terrifying talent bonus within the World Fragment.

This is equivalent to Xiao Feng being the one to find the Northern Dark Divine Skill; aside from internal energy, the foundation Li Su laid from the very beginning was aimed directly at the first-rate.

While Li Su continued to practice and improve.

The others who had also experienced the battle five days ago naturally did not stop.

Lying on the ground, waiting in despair for judgment to arrive—even if only for a moment—that feeling was still etched into their bones.

Wang Jiantong and Xu Jing began to practice like madmen after entering Weizhou City.

As for Xuancheng and the others, once Xuankong woke up, they also threw themselves into intense training; not to mention their techniques, their sparring matches were frequent.

During the time Li Su sat eating, the sound of fists and kicks in the small courtyard behind the inn never ceased. If not for their special status and the fact that they had given notice in advance, the local authorities would have long since come knocking.

After all, the commotion was simply too great. Especially with Xu Jing and Wang Jiantong—the two of them, with their swords, managed to create the sensation of a brawl involving dozens of people.

As for Ming Yulong, who had made a date with Li Su, she neither practiced nor sparred. From the moment she arrived in Weizhou, she sat on the roof of the inn every day, gazing into the distance without saying a word.

Except for the one time she came down when Li Su woke up, she never left the roof, just sitting there quietly alone, watching the sky.

The martial artists were tense, but the soldiers and civilians of Weizhou were undoubtedly even more so.

As time ticked away, the time of the entire city seemed to have solidified. Every passing second felt heavy, filled with an indescribable oppression.

Finally, four days later.

Wooo—!

A horn blast, one that did not belong to the Central Plains, rang out. Boom! Boom! Boom!

The sound of footsteps, as if they were about to trample the very heavens and earth, erupted. Outside Weizhou City, a vast, black, seemingly endless mass of figures arrived, carrying boundless might!

Seeming to sense something, a gale howled across the world at this moment. The thick, impenetrable clouds overhead began to sink, and the entire earth grew so heavy that it became hard to breathe.

The Western Xia Army.

The troops are at the city gates!!!