Breakthrough to a Warrior of the Ninth Rank

Winter had come.

That year, winter in the O'Brien Empire was exceptionally cold. A heavy snowfall began in the morning, filling the sky and covering the earth.

Luo Feng stood in his room, watching the snowflakes pour down from the sky and drift in the cold wind. His heart was utterly tranquil.

Reaching out with his right hand, Luo Feng caught a leaf tossed about by the wind and gazed quietly out the window. The whole scene was exceptionally beautiful.

Time passed. The snow fell from morning until evening, covering the ground with a thick layer a full foot deep.

The snow fell, and the wind rose again.

Luo Feng went downstairs and stood in the street, feeling the biting wind stir his heart. Suddenly, the Battle-qi within him slowly grew unstable. His stern expression finally softened a little, because he was about to break through.

Luo Feng sat cross-legged on the flat ground, his body trembling violently. With a crack, it was as if some shackle hidden within him had been broken in an instant. A tremendously fierce surge of Battle-qi swept unstoppably through every part of his body, like the overflowing waters of the Yellow River.

It was like a phoenix undergoing rebirth, finding life after being brought to the brink of death. At that moment, his cultivation, which had stagnated for so long, miraculously broke through. Luo Feng's own strength surpassed the Peak of the Eighth Rank and finally reached the Initial Stage of the Ninth Rank.

Wild, surging, pure Battle-qi rampaged freely through his body in an unending stream. The vast reserves of pure Battle-qi hidden in every inch of Luo Feng's skin were stirred into motion in an instant.

His bones shuddered and his skin rippled. Amid a crisp crackling like firecrackers, it was as though some unyielding restraint had suddenly been shattered. Luo Feng could even faintly hear a breaking sound from within his body. At that profound moment, the bottleneck that had held him back for so long silently gave way.

A breakthrough, to a Warrior of the Ninth Rank.

Feeling the immense power contained within him, Luo Feng could no longer hold back. Without another word, he unleashed a terrifying burst of energy, stirring up a vast, incomparably powerful wave in the space around him. A great, cutting gale swept fiercely through everything nearby.

Luo Feng opened his eyes, a trace of a joyful smile in them. He raised his head and looked ahead. The snow had stopped, and although it was evening, the snow made the whole world bright.

"Three years. It's been three years since I came to the O'Brien Empire. I was already at the Peak of the Eighth-level Warrior when I arrived. I haven't given up a single chance to cultivate in these three years, yet it still took me three years to finally become a Warrior of the Ninth Rank." Feeling the powerful Battle-qi within him, Luo Feng could not help sighing softly. Three years. He had never given up the slightest opportunity to cultivate, yet even so, it had taken him three years to break through and become a Warrior of the Ninth Rank.

During his first year, Luo Feng had defeated numerous nominal disciples of the War God Sect in succession. He had long since been blacklisted among them as someone they would certainly teach a harsh lesson whenever they got the chance. He had also become a friend despite their difference in age with the ancestor of the Mosca Clan, an ancient family in the imperial capital with a thousand-year history. At intervals, Luo Feng would challenge reclusive Saint Domain experts in the O'Brien imperial capital. Naturally, he only picked those at the initial stage, but the result had never changed: utter defeat. Even so, Luo Feng was not discouraged. He grew braver with each fight and had never stopped over the three years.

Over those three years, Luo Feng's level of attainment had grown ever closer to perfection. In the latter half of his second year in the O'Brien Empire, he had finally reached the threshold of Drawing Upon Heaven and Earth. But a year of frenzied challenges had brought him no greater progress. He had remained at that threshold, having only just touched it.

"Roar!" A magical beast's cry came from the distance.

With its beautiful, smooth, silvery-white dragon scales and noble bearing, it was none other than the Silver Dragon, a Level Nine Magical Beast.

"Wa'ersi, you're here," Luo Feng said with a faint smile. "You certainly haven't been idle these past three years. The Winged Bird Dragon King is a Level Nine Magical Beast, after all. There's no need to keep bullying him. At least give him some of the dignity a Level Nine Magical Beast deserves."

Three years ago, when Luo Feng first challenged Cass, the imperial capital's genius, the Silver Dragon had naturally accompanied him into battle as his magical beast companion. From then on, the Silver Dragon had set his sights on Cass's Winged Bird Dragon King. Whenever Wa'ersi, the Silver Dragon at Luo Feng's side, got bored, he liked to go torment the Winged Bird Dragon King, who was often left battered and bruised. Cass frequently came to argue with Luo Feng about it, but Luo Feng was no pushover. "The Silver Dragon beat up your pet. What's that got to do with me? Go fight him yourself. I won't interfere, whether he lives or dies." In the end, however, Cass and the Winged Bird Dragon King together had only barely managed to fight the Silver Dragon to a draw.

The Silver Dragon had learned to be clever, too. Whenever the Winged Bird Dragon King was not with Cass, he would go torment him, often leaving Luo Feng caught between laughter and tears.

"Master, did you break through to become a Warrior of the Ninth Rank? Judging from the Battle-qi fluctuations around you just now, that should only happen during an advancement, right?" The Silver Dragon had been bullying the Winged Bird Dragon King when he sensed the violent fluctuations of Battle-qi around Luo Feng. Guessing that Luo Feng was about to break through, he had hurried over to stand guard for him.

"Yes, that's right. After three years and countless challenges, I finally made a breakthrough. Just now, I successfully advanced to become a Warrior of the Ninth Rank," Luo Feng said calmly.

"Master, should we go challenge those Saint Domain Initial Stage experts again, then? When you were at the Peak of the Eighth-level Warrior, you could already fight them head-on, taking serious injuries in exchange for giving them minor ones. Now that you've broken through to become a Warrior of the Ninth Rank, you should be able to match a Saint Domain expert, right?" the Silver Dragon said.

"How could it be that simple, Wa'ersi? You don't understand. The reason I could take serious injuries in exchange for inflicting minor ones on Saint Domain Initial Stage experts was that I fought as if I didn't care about my life. Most of the time, they had too many things to worry about, and those constraints limited their strength. That's the only reason I could inflict minor injuries on them. In truth, whether in my level of attainment or the extent of my Battle-qi, there's hardly anything about me that measures up to them." Luo Feng's cool voice carried a trace of bitterness.

"Master, you're known as the strongest beneath the Saint Domain, and now that you've broken through to become a Warrior of the Ninth Rank, you should have the strength to fight a Saint Domain Initial Stage expert head-on, right?" the Silver Dragon Wa'ersi said, still unconvinced.

"Ah, all right. Let me tell you why the gap between Saint Domain experts and Warriors of the Ninth Rank is so great." Luo Feng smiled bitterly. "The reason Saint Domain experts are so rare is that many warriors take the wrong path from the very beginning. They only know how to cultivate Battle-qi or temper their bodies single-mindedly. In fact, both are the wrong path."

Wa'ersi asked curiously, "The wrong path? Master, what do you mean they got wrong?"

"Comprehending the level of Drawing Upon Heaven and Earth-I call it 'Drawing Upon Heaven and Earth.' To reach the Saint Domain, one must comprehend this level," Luo Feng said. "That's also why Saint Domain experts can unleash such overwhelming power with a wave of their hands. Experts of the Ninth Rank are stuck at this step because they can't comprehend Drawing Upon Heaven and Earth. So the vast majority of Warriors of the Ninth Rank remain trapped here, unable to break through to the Saint Domain in their lifetimes. Battle-qi is secondary. Think about it: would a Warrior of the Ninth Rank who has accumulated Battle-qi for over a hundred years have less than a Saint Domain expert? But if he doesn't comprehend Drawing Upon Heaven and Earth, he'll never break through to the Saint Domain."

"Then, Master, is the reason you dare call yourself the strongest beneath the Saint Domain also related to Drawing Upon Heaven and Earth?" the Silver Dragon asked curiously.

"I've only just reached the threshold of Drawing Upon Heaven and Earth, but even that alone is enough to leave me without an equal beneath the Saint Domain. Against a Saint Domain expert, though, I'm still very weak. Even if he's at the Saint Domain Initial Stage, or has only just entered the Saint Domain, as long as he gets serious and fights ruthlessly, I certainly won't be his match." Luo Feng smiled bitterly. "So when you say I can match a Saint Domain expert, it's really only because they underestimate me and don't dare risk their lives fighting me. After all, reaching the Saint Domain is equivalent to becoming immortal. Naturally, they wouldn't be as reckless as I am."

"Let's get ready to leave. Let's go say goodbye to our old friends. After a while, we'll prepare to depart. It's been three years in the O'Brien Empire, and I've already broken through to become a Warrior of the Ninth Rank. There's no point in staying any longer. I can't make a greater breakthrough in a short time, so I'm going out to travel," Luo Feng said slowly, looking at the Silver Dragon.

After three years, countless challenges and countless painful defeats, Luo Feng had never given up. Now that he had become a Warrior of the Ninth Rank, there was no longer any point in staying. It was time to leave.

He looked up at the sky. The silver-white snow covering the ground had witnessed Luo Feng's transformation. Perhaps, the next time Luo Feng returned to the O'Brien Empire, just how dazzling he would be then was something no one could know.