Innate Qi and Intentional Blast Punch!!

Wang Lang was still a little dazed.

"Can five whites really combine into red?"

He muttered inwardly, but his hands did not slow in the slightest.

With a thought, he swiftly removed the three barely useful entries he had equipped.

They would be synthesis materials soon enough anyway.

Then, with great solemnity, he equipped Ageless and Undying · Red.

In an instant, an indescribable coolness swept through his entire body, like sweet rain after a long drought, like a weary bird returning to its nest.

The faint soreness and hidden pains accumulated over years of cultivating the Basic Body Tempering Art vanished into thin air at that moment.

Even the exhaustion from arranging the old man's funeral during the day was swept away.

He felt so energized that he could climb a mountain, beat a wild boar to death, then run a marathon back down.

"This..." Wang Lang swallowed unconsciously, an uncontrollable surge of excitement rushing straight to the crown of his head.

He dearly wanted to imitate the poets of old and recite a line about holding the sun and moon in his hand and plucking the stars to express his feelings.

Yet after racking his brains, all he managed was, "That's fucking awesome!"

Sure enough, his lack of culture limited his performance.

Wang Lang decided to put his literary career aside for now and turned his gaze toward the remaining fifteen entries.

By the five-into-one rule, he could synthesize three more times.

"My luck was so red last round. Why not... go all in?"

Wang Lang looked at the small cauldron floating quietly before him, and a bold idea emerged.

He tried stuffing all fifteen remaining entries into it at once.

The little cauldron trembled slightly—and actually accepted them!

"This might work!" Wang Lang steadied himself inwardly, feeling that his good luck was still going strong.

He silently said, "Synthesize!"

The moment the command was issued, the little cauldron began shaking violently, the light on its surface flickering uncertainly.

Yet thirty seconds passed, then a minute...

The little cauldron continued to shake without stopping, showing no sign of coming to a halt.

"...No way, right?" Wang Lang's heart skipped a beat.

"Does this cauldron have a capacity limit? I should've honestly synthesized them three times. Sure enough, greed bites off more than it can chew!"

And at that very moment!

Not one, but three pillars of light in different colors erupted from the little cauldron!

After the first orange light stabilized, entry information appeared: [Innate Qi · Orange]

[Effect One: All things are Qi. Your body has shattered the shackles of conventional cultivation.

Without needing to actively circulate your cultivation, every breath automatically draws in and tempers the essence of the sun and moon, the spiritual energy of plants, and even drifting unknown energies from heaven and earth.

Effect Two: A Bodily Grotto-Heaven. Your body is like a growable blessed grotto-heaven.

As it accumulates through breathing, your internal organs, limbs, and bones will be continuously tempered. Their density, strength, and power will slowly increase forever, with no upper limit.

Effect Three: Unbroken Breath. In any extreme environment—deep sea, vacuum, poisonous miasma, or even another dimension—your body can automatically adjust and adapt. Its internal circulation forms a world of its own, ensuring your survival.]

The second was a purple entry: Intentional Blast Punch · Purple.

[Effect One: Accumulation of Grand Intent. The physical damage and mental suffering you endure will not fade away in vain, but will instead be stored by your body and converted into Grand Intent.

Effect Two: Blast Punch Eruption. You may unleash your accumulated Grand Intent at any time along with your next attack.

The power of the Blast Punch depends on the amount of Grand Intent accumulated. Grand Intent that has not been released will continue accumulating until it is completely expended.]

The third was a blue light: [Super Saiyan Hairstyle · Blue].

[Effect One: Golden Furious Hair. When your emotions become extremely agitated, your hair will instantly defy the laws of physics, every strand standing upright and turning into dazzling gold, accompanied by special golden aura effects.]

"..." Wang Lang stared calmly at the third entry and fell silent for two seconds.

Then, without hesitation, he banished it to the cold palace of his entry inventory.

His attention returned to the first two entries.

"[Innate Qi · Orange]... getting stronger just by breathing? Combined with Ageless and Undying..."

And Intentional Blast Punch · Purple—wasn't this the skill of that burly man called Sett from some summoner's canyon?

He also noticed that entry quality seemed linked to the number of effects.

Red and orange had three effects, purple had two, while blue, green, and white had only one.

Without further hesitation, Wang Lang immediately equipped [Innate Qi · Orange] and Intentional Blast Punch · Purple.

The instant the entries fused with him, he instinctively took a deep breath.

With just that ordinary breath of air, he could clearly feel a faint yet undeniably real energy flowing into his limbs and bones along with his breathing.

His physique seemed to become just the slightest bit more solid.

More importantly, some invisible shackle that had bound him for so long cracked apart at that moment!

With a thought, he summoned his personal panel:

[Name: Wang Lang]

[Physique: Mortal Flesh]

[Body Refinement Realm: Body Tempering Realm (Second Layer)]

[Qi Refinement Realm: Qi Induction Realm (First Layer)]

[Cultivation Art: Basic Body Tempering Art]

[Equipped Entries:

Ageless and Undying · Red,

Innate Qi · Orange,

Intentional Blast Punch · Purple]

[Entry Inventory: Click to view all entries...]

"Qi Refinement Realm! First Layer of Qi Induction!"

The barrier that had troubled him for years—the barrier Old Wang had believed came from his dull aptitude and meant he had no fate with Qi refinement—had been broken through so silently?

He first chuckled softly, then could no longer contain himself and burst into loud laughter.

Yet as he laughed, his eyes grew a little wet.

"You old bastard... Even before dying, you kept nagging about how, once I had the ability, I should protect the people of a region and keep them safe..."

He wiped the corner of his eye. "Back then, I could barely protect myself. What did I have to protect anyone else with? But now..."

"And you, old man. You clearly didn't have much ability in this life, yet you insisted on imitating others by slaying demons and subduing devils. In your next life, you'd better be reborn into a wealthy family—but don't be so fond of meddling in other people's business!"

After his emotions calmed, Wang Lang recalled a letter the old man had mentioned while on his deathbed, one he had wanted Wang Lang to deliver.

But in the end, Old Wang had waved his hand and said to forget it. It was too far away and unsafe. He had not said where the letter was.

Yet Wang Lang had followed the old man for more than ten years and knew every one of his hiding habits like the back of his hand.

He rose and went to the room where Old Wang had lived. Familiar with the routine, he felt beneath the bed and pried up the third floor tile.

Sure enough, there was an envelope wrapped tightly in oilcloth.

After opening the oilcloth, he found an exquisitely made letter inside. Written on its cover were the words:

Hidden Rain Pavilion of Yong Province, personally opened by Pavilion Master Gu Feixue.

The sender's signature was Wang Xiaoyao.

Wang Xiaoyao was Old Wang's real name.

And Yong Province, Hidden Rain Pavilion, Pavilion Master Gu Feixue...

Wang Lang carefully recalled the geographical knowledge of this world.

The Limitless Dynasty possessed the lands of Nine Provinces. Yuan Province, where he was located, lay in the southwest, while Yong Province was far off in the northeast, separated by more than ten thousand miles.

Old Wang actually knew someone so far away?

And Hidden Rain Pavilion—just from its name, it sounded like no minor force.

And the name Gu Feixue sounded like it came with a story.

In an instant, Wang Lang concocted the plot of a hundreds-of-thousands-of-words martial world novel of grudges, love, and hatred.

He forcefully suppressed his curiosity to open the letter and see what was inside.

It was the old man's privacy. He still had that much of a bottom line.

He wrapped the letter again and hid it back where it had been.

"I'll definitely deliver the letter, but not now." Wang Lang quickly made his decision.

He had always sought stability, believing one should act only with absolute certainty; with eighty percent certainty, one should still be cautious; below fifty percent, one should simply run.

Although he now possessed three heaven-defying entries, his starting point was too low.

The outside world was perilous. If he casually encountered a stronger demonic beast, he might have to rely on [Intentional Blast Punch] and passively take a beating before he could turn the tables.

That did not fit his aesthetic.

Once he had grown stronger through [Innate Qi · Orange] simply by breathing and raised his strength by several more tiers...

It would not be too late to set out after ensuring he could handle every risk along the way.

Next, he found the cultivation manual for Song of Righteous Qi in a hidden compartment beneath the old man's bed board.

Old Wang had become a Qi Refiner precisely through this art.

Wang Lang had tried cultivating it in the past, but he had been unable to sense Qi then. Over time, he had nearly forgotten even its contents.

Things were different now. He was a genuine Qi Induction Realm cultivator, so naturally, he needed to pick it up again.

He read through it carefully, committing the contents to memory before solemnly hiding the manual away.

In this era where knowledge was monopolized, this thing was a priceless treasure.

Returning to his room, Wang Lang sat cross-legged and began actively cultivating according to the methods of Song of Righteous Qi.

According to the cultivation art's description and the common knowledge of this world, the path of Qi refinement began with Qi Induction.

So-called Qi Induction meant guiding the various forms of Qi between heaven and earth into one's body.

Whether it was the gentle vital essence of plants, the domineering essence of the sun and moon, or even the Qi of certain special Earth Veins, all could theoretically be absorbed.

The prerequisite was that one's body and cultivation art could withstand it. One must not draw in overly violent Qi and burst oneself apart.

Once Qi was drawn into the body, it could nourish the flesh, prolong one's life, and gradually allow one to master such mystical methods as releasing Qi force externally and controlling objects.

After the Qi Induction Realm came the Spirit Condensation Realm, which chiefly cultivated spiritual power, strengthened divine sense, allowed one to observe one's own body inwardly and investigate outwardly, and even condense a dharma manifestation body.

Beyond that, the Profound Connection Realm began communicating with heaven and earth on a deeper level.

As for the Dao Integration Realm, that was a legendary realm, where one fused a particular Dao into oneself.

I am the Dao, and the Dao is me. It could be called the ceiling of combat power in this world.

This Song of Righteous Qi contained only the Qi Induction section.

The Grand Righteous Qi cultivated from it was a special kind of Qi that was upright and peaceful, carrying a trace of a scholar's unbending integrity.

It had a certain restraining effect on demons and evil entities.

Unfortunately, though Old Wang had talent, he started too late. By the time he died, he had only reached the third layer of the Qi Induction Realm.

The body refinement system, on the other hand, was comparatively pure and brutal.

The Body Tempering Realm hardened the flesh and tempered the blood and vitality, making the skin and muscles tough while greatly increasing one's strength.

The Bedrock Realm that followed tempered the body until it was like bedrock, difficult for blades and swords to wound, with the strength of ten thousand jin.

The Myriad Manifestations Realm was said to grant the power to pull up mountains and rivers. The flesh could manifest the colossal power of myriad phenomena, capable of cutting rivers and shattering peaks with ease.

And at the highest Immortality Realm, the flesh was immortal and unyielding through countless tribulations. Even a drop of blood could regenerate the body. It was practically a humanoid walking nuclear bomb.

Though there seemed to be only four major realms, every step was as difficult as climbing to heaven. Especially the final Immortality Realm—throughout history, those who achieved it were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

The Basic Body Tempering Art Wang Lang currently cultivated was merely the most commonplace Body Tempering Realm cultivation art. It did not even record how to break through into the Bedrock Realm.

But with Ageless and Undying as his foundation, he was already immortal in a sense.

And with Innate Qi constantly strengthening him through every breath and tempering his body, the path of body refinement was practically a smooth road for him.

Half an hour later, Wang Lang opened his eyes, his expression somewhat subtle and carrying a trace of helplessness that said, as expected.

After painstakingly guiding Qi for so long, the Grand Righteous Qi he had gained...

Was less efficient than the improvement [Innate Qi] gave him through half an incense stick's worth of autonomous breathing!

That was rather awkward...

After a stretch of speechlessness, he decisively gave up trying.

"Since cultivation efficiency can't compete with breathing, I might as well put my energy into something else."

His gaze fell upon the description of Intentional Blast Punch · Purple.

"Perhaps I can first find a way to stack some Grand Intent?" Wang Lang mused.