Qin De

Returning to the martial arts hall's rear courtyard.

Although Cao Bing's family martial arts hall had been closed for over five months, the signboard outside still bore the hall's plaque.

Of course, Cao Bing could not be bothered to deal with such matters.

In Cao Bing's room, two servants poured heated water into the bath barrel, and he leaped inside.

Tonight, I must break through to the Houtian Late Stage! Cao Bing resolved inwardly.

The body Cao Bing possessed in the Devouring Starry Sky World could cultivate the Tongtian Diagram without restraint. Although most of the three-colored Xiantian True Qi produced by the Tongtian Diagram was absorbed into his cells to strengthen his physical constitution, a considerable portion could still be guided by Cao Bing into his meridians to bolster his internal cultivation.

In truth, the True Qi Cao Bing gained from cultivating the Tongtian Diagram increased far faster than that of the Flame Fire Art, and its quality was much better as well. After all, one was Houtian Internal Force, while the other was Xiantian True Qi. Unfortunately, the Tongtian Diagram only had 108 movement diagrams and no method for circulating energy through the meridians, so he could only guide the Xiantian True Qi condensed by the Tongtian Diagram into the circulation method of the Flame Fire Art.

Otherwise, Cao Bing's cultivation would have progressed even faster. Even so, the body he had in the Devouring Starry Sky World had rapidly reached the Houtian Late Stage, and all its cultivation had been replaced with Xiantian True Qi.

I already broke through once over there. It should be much easier here this time, right? Cao Bing thought.

If only I could cultivate the Tongtian Diagram here too!

Cao Bing sighed, then cast the thought out of his mind. Without reaching External Martial Xiantian, the Tongtian Diagram could not be cultivated. That was simply impossible to change.

Cao Bing sat cross-legged in the hot water, leaving only his head above the surface.

Cao Bing closed his eyes and focused for a while, adjusting his state of mind until it was as still as water before beginning to circulate the Flame Fire Art.

"Although the Yanhuo Jue is fire-aspected, this hot water does not actually affect me much. On the contrary, the heat stimulates the pores all over my body to open, helping me expel impurities. It can also soften my meridians to a certain extent, making circulation through them smoother and increasing my chances of breaking through."

As Cao Bing contemplated this, the True Qi within his meridians circulated neither too quickly nor too slowly, calm and steady. Seeking quick results was the greatest taboo when attempting a breakthrough.

After Cao Bing's True Qi had circulated through his meridians for six full cycles, his aura gradually grew denser.

"Here it goes!"

Cao Bing's mind sank, and he gradually accelerated the circulation of the Flame Fire Art. His aura began to soar again. By the ninth cycle, it had been raised to its peak.

"Pop!"

With a soft sound, the aura that had soared to its peak abruptly burst apart, sending ripples spreading through the water around Cao Bing.

"I did it!"

Cao Bing's eyes snapped open, and an irrepressible smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

"It finally happened naturally. This body had been stuck at the Houtian Mid Stage for two or three years!"

"Sure enough, having experience and having none are completely different matters," Cao Bing muttered with a smile.

In the Devouring Starry Sky World, even with the support of the Tongtian Diagram's Xiantian True Qi, Cao Bing had needed three full attempts before successfully reaching the Houtian Late Stage.

But here, he had no Xiantian True Qi. Yet with the experience from his previous breakthrough, he succeeded in a single try.

Time passed swiftly, and ten days went by.

Cao Bing once again altered his appearance and arrived at the shore of Mirror Moon Lake.

"Mr. Luo." Not long after Cao Bing appeared, the young man who had opened the door for him in the civilian residence found him.

"Mr. Luo, Mr. Qin is waiting for you."

"Lead the way," Cao Bing said coolly.

The young man did not mind and immediately set off ahead of him.

Cao Bing followed him through several turns before finally arriving beside a small pavilion in the woods.

With Cao Bing's eyesight, he immediately spotted the two figures in the pavilion, one seated and one standing.

The standing man was none other than Mr. Huang, whom he had seen before. Cao Bing did not recognize the seated man, but he appeared middle-aged, dressed in an expensive black robe, with a short beard on his chin, deep eyes, and an imposing air. He was undoubtedly Qin De.

"Greetings, Prince Zhen Dong." Cao Bing cupped his hands.

"Boss Luo, it has been a long time. Just call me Mr. Qin," Qin De said indifferently, his eyes fixed on Cao Bing's face.

"Mr. Qin. As expected of a man of great bearing—you actually dared come meet me while knowing nothing of my identity." Since Qin De had put it that way, Cao Bing went along with it. "But since Mr. Qin has come, Luo will speak plainly. Since I wished to meet you, I naturally have a matter to discuss."

"May I ask what Mr. Luo seeks from me this time?" Qin De's expression remained calm, showing not the slightest change because of Cao Bing's earlier flattery.

"I heard that Mr. Qin's Third Prince cannot cultivate Internal Force and can only follow the path of external martial arts," Cao Bing said.

Qin De's heart suddenly tightened, though his expression remained unchanged. With a light laugh, he said, "Mr. Luo certainly has his methods. My disappointing third son is indeed cultivating external martial arts."

"Difficult, isn't it?" Cao Bing asked.

"Hahaha, Mr. Luo, you jest. Since ancient times, who on the Qianlong Continent has not known that external martial arts are nothing but a dead end? Who has ever entered the Xiantian realm through it?" Qin De gave a bitter smile. "Surely Mr. Luo did not come today merely to mock Qin?"

"Heh, of course not." Cao Bing shook his head with a soft laugh, then looked at Qin De again. "What if I told you that external martial arts are not a dead end, merely a path whose inheritance has been severed?"

"What did you say?!" Qin De's expression instantly changed.

Of all the things in Qin De's life, the one he felt most indebted over was his third son. When he learned that his third son could not cultivate Internal Force and had resolutely embarked on the path of external martial arts, he had felt both pride and sorrow.

He was sorrowful because it was a dead end, a broken road. No matter how long one cultivated, one could only reach Houtian Peak and never cross into Xiantian.

Now that Cao Bing was telling him external martial arts were not a dead end, Qin De's emotions were easy to imagine.

"Mr. Qin, please calm yourself." Cao Bing inconspicuously took a step back. The man before him was a Xiantian Great Perfection expert. Cao Bing had no confidence in facing him head-on; meeting him this time had already been an enormous risk.

"I lost my composure. But is what Mr. Luo just said true?" Qin De was indeed a formidable man. Realizing his lapse, he quickly regained his composure.

"Naturally, it is true," Cao Bing answered with certainty.

"What method?" Qin De pressed.

"This is a vial of medicine. Its effect is limited, and it is almost useless to Xiantian experts, but it can forcibly allow an external martial artist at Houtian Peak to break through to Xiantian with their physical body."

As he spoke, Cao Bing straightforwardly pulled a vial of medicine from his robes, his words astonishing.

Qin De's eyes immediately lit up as he stared intently at the glass tube in Cao Bing's hand. Inside was a thumb-sized amount of pale green liquid.

"Mr. Luo, can you guarantee it?" Qin De barely suppressed his excitement and forced his gaze away from the medicine.

Otherwise, he truly could not guarantee that he would not seize it by force.

He did not yet know that his third son, Qin Yu, had already obtained a supreme treasure. Even without Qin De's help, Qin Yu would be able to break through to Xiantian on his own within two years.