Genius?

Back in the Third Squad's office, Yang Wenqing sat before his desk, his gaze returning to the case file as he prepared to complete the closing report.

When he closed the report and handed it to Liu Qin to enter into the city defense system, the sky outside suddenly darkened. It was the prelude to a storm. He instinctively stood by the window, watching the sky outside and waiting for the downpour to begin.

After an unknown amount of time, the office door was gently pushed open and Wu Yan walked in. When Yang Wenqing looked at him, Wu Yan made a gesture indicating that everything had been taken care of.

Half an hour later, a major public security conflict case in the northern part of the city was reported to the Major Crimes Unit and required someone from the unit to follow up. Wu Yan volunteered, and Yang Wenqing let him go.

Near the end of the workday, Liu Qin said softly, "Captain, I've finished entering the case file."

Yang Wenqing checked the time and instructed, "Archive the case file, then you can leave work early."

Upon hearing that, Liu Qin promptly tidied up, took the case file, and happily left the office.

Outside, the torrential rain that had been brewing for so long finally came pouring down. Raindrops as large as beans pounded densely against the windows, producing a dull, unceasing sound.

Yang Wenqing listened to the rain until the hands of the wall clock pointed to the end of the workday. Only then did he rise, turn off the lights, lock the door, head downstairs, and walk into the curtain of rain without hesitation.

When he returned to Room 305 of Building Three in Dongning Community, the place was silent, with only the endless patter of rain outside the windows reaching his ears. He did not turn on the lights. Instead, he went straight to the center of the living room. The Foundation-Stabilizing Formation here could still be used for some time.

He took off his coat, leaving only a simple training outfit, then sat cross-legged at the formation's core. Taking a deep breath, he calmed the somewhat chaotic thoughts brought on by the case and the rainstorm, focusing his attention on the Spirit-Gathering Bracelet around his left wrist.

All setbacks stemmed from one's own weakness. Weakness was the root of it all.

Yang Wenqing formed a hand seal, sending an almost imperceptible gleam of spiritual light into the bracelet. The Spirit-Gathering Bracelet on his wrist trembled lightly. The tiny, intricate runes on its inner ring lit up one after another, while the piece of Radiant Jade embedded in its groove visibly became crystal-clear.

The next moment—

Bzz!

A torrent of spiritual energy was forcibly drawn in from the surrounding space, converging around Yang Wenqing. Its efficiency was more than ten times faster than relying on the community's environment and his own breathing exercises as he had before!

Yang Wenqing did not dare slack off. He immediately circulated the method for the first refinement of the Ninefold Refinement Method, Bones and Muscles Resonance. The previously tranquil spiritual energy within his Qi Sea was stirred, surging along that complicated route and once more being imbued with that unique vibrational frequency.

However, this sensation was completely different from before!

Supported by such vast and pure spiritual energy, the unbearable soreness, numbness, stabbing pain, and swelling itch became even more intense, causing the Foundation-Stabilizing Formation to drain more quickly as well.

"Bzz, bzz—"

Countless tiny bolts of thunder seemed to rumble between his muscles and bones.

Yang Wenqing could clearly see that, within the Golden Core World, the fine cracks on the surface of his projection's bones were being repaired at a faster rate under the spiritual energy's vibrations and nourishment, becoming even sturdier. His muscle fibers seemed to be torn apart and reassembled again and again, growing tougher and more vigorous.

The Spirit-Gathering Formation's effects were actually this remarkable!

Yang Wenqing was exhilarated. He completely immersed himself, guiding the surging spiritual energy with all his strength as it tempered his muscles, bones, flesh, and skin over and over again. The roar of the storm outside became distant background noise. His entire world contained only the thunderous forging within his body and the sense of fulfillment brought by his steadily increasing strength.

He could feel that at this rate, the first refinement, Bones and Muscles Resonance, might require only a year. And that was without even using the Dragon Tendon Tiger Bone Grass.

Suddenly, Yang Wenqing noticed that a considerable portion of the overflowing spiritual energy was being absorbed by the Golden Core. He immediately sank part of his consciousness into the Golden Core World to closely observe the exact state of his physical projection.

At that moment, the Golden Core was like an efficient energy transfer station, transforming the surplus spiritual energy it absorbed into a gentle, peaceful energy that fed back into his physical body.

Moreover, this energy was not limited to the bones and muscles currently being tempered. Nourished by it, his skin membranes were becoming tougher. This was precisely the preliminary effect sought by Skin Membranes Like Drums, the second refinement of the Ninefold Refinement Method.

In addition, it felt as though spiritual energy had merged into his blood. As it coursed through him, it carried a faint warmth. This was the cultivation effect of the third refinement, Blood and Qi Like Quicksilver.

Even his five viscera and six bowels felt clearer and more comfortable beneath the caress of that gentle energy. Certain subtle chronic ailments that were ordinarily difficult to detect quietly dissolved away. This was the reaction of cultivating the fourth refinement, Viscera Containing Essence.

After observing these changes, Yang Wenqing could no longer suppress the joy in his heart. He awoke from his meditative state, immediately rose, went to his desk, and dug out several notes he had recorded at the Security Academy.

Very quickly, the joy on his face intensified. Just as he remembered, his current state was precisely what only geniuses with cultivation aptitude would experience. As long as these geniuses sat in meditation and practiced Qi Refining, they could cultivate the first four refinements simultaneously. Moreover, their meditation and Qi Refining also constituted Meridian Opening and Channel Expansion, widening the twelve primary meridians. This was the fifth refinement.

Furthermore, outside of cultivation, they would gradually expand their spiritual sense, which was the sixth refinement. Thus, these geniuses needed only to cultivate normally in meditation for five or six years to reach the sixth refinement, whereas ordinary cultivators might already be past fifty by the time they reached this stage.

After that came further expanding the eight extraordinary meridians, opening the qi apertures, merging the spiritual energy within the body, and entering the Marrow Cleansing realm. Those with superior cultivation aptitude naturally possessed broader meridians, and their qi apertures already had spiritual energy flowing through them, so cultivation proceeded as naturally as water flowing into a channel.

Yet such people were nearly one in ten thousand. Whenever one was discovered, they would be sent directly to the headquarters for training. Ordinary places would never even see them.

And now, Yang Wenqing had discovered that he himself was one of the geniuses described in the records. How could he not be delighted? Before he had even read halfway through the notes, he could no longer restrain himself and rose to pace back and forth across the living room.

After finishing the notes, he let out a long breath. It took the great willpower of someone who had lived two lives to finally suppress the joy in his heart. Only then did he realize that the Spirit-Gathering Formation on his wrist was still active. Throughout this entire process, the Golden Core in his mind had continuously absorbed spiritual energy to nourish his body, though without his guidance, the process was very slow.

The joy he had suppressed surfaced once more, but then he quickly restrained his expression. Not only would doing this easily attract the attention of others, he also could not afford the consumption of Radiant Jade.

After all, this was a world of cultivation. The headquarters had quite a few old monsters who had lived for over a thousand years!

After a long while, Yang Wenqing suppressed his wild excitement and all his concerns, then sat cross-legged once more at the center of the Foundation-Stabilizing Formation. He decided to verify it himself and see whether he could truly cultivate like the geniuses described in the notes.

He activated the Spirit-Gathering Bracelet again, but did not immediately circulate the specific route of the first refinement of the Ninefold Refinement Method. Instead, he tried guiding the pure spiritual energy in his Qi Sea to slowly circulate through his body in a more expansive grand cycle, attempting to widen the twelve primary meridians.