Chapter 32: Circulating the Meridian Diagrams

With Cheng Lingsu, this virtuous helper, by his side, Fang Han finally felt at ease and began to attempt cultivation of Beiming Divine Skill.

First, he thoroughly studied and comprehended the internal cultivation method of Beiming Divine Skill, over and over again, striving to understand its meaning to the greatest extent, so as not to make any mistakes.

This process alone took him three full days.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t start directly, but unlike Duan Yu, who only had a half-baked understanding-or not even—and still rushed into practice, that just wasn’t his style.

He preferred perfection and doing things to the best of his ability.

On the fourth day, Fang Han dispersed all the internal energy he had cultivated through Health-Nurturing Inner Skill.

“Hu…”

Fang Han’s face turned a little pale. This kind of energy dispersal was a complete eradication—

—not merely depleting one’s internal energy temporarily to restore it later through breathing exercises.

The inner force he’d cultivated over the past year or so—along with the attribute bonuses from “Spirit Endowment Additions”—was now entirely gone. Naturally, this took a toll on both his body and spirit.

After all, internal energy is the result of refining essence into qi (liàn jīng huà qì).

Cheng Lingsu, with a tense little face, stood at his side performing acupuncture to stabilize and balance his qi and blood, helping him recover the loss.

She also gave him some specially prepared restorative pills to strengthen his core and replenish vitality.

These weren’t particularly difficult tasks for her; they were rather simple, but when it came to Fang Han, she gave her full attention.

Afraid she might not do well enough.

Under Cheng Lingsu’s careful treatment, Fang Han soon recovered considerably.

Once his spirits were restored, he officially began cultivating the first meridian diagram of Beiming Divine Skill.

Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian — Ren Vessel

He slowly adjusted his breathing, circulating his qi. Although his internal force was dispersed, the sense of energy still lingered.

Following this qi sensation along the route that ran counter to traditional martial arts, he slowly circulated the energy.

Though the process felt a little unfamiliar and awkward, it was surprisingly free of any inner conflict.

Fang Han was briefly surprised, but after a bit of thought, quickly realized why.

His Health-Nurturing Inner Skill had originated from the Health-Nurturing Technique he created during his first life simulation. Although it counted as an inner cultivation method, back then, he had never seen any legitimate internal skill techniques.

It was purely something he improvised based on years of medical understanding, the internal strength insights in Taizu Long Fist and Wind-Following Sword Technique, and a few vague, overheard formulas.

There had never been any real, widely accepted internal cultivation methods for him to use as a reference. So the inner skill he developed—especially its route of energy flow—differed significantly from standard internal arts.

Moreover, the number of meridians it involved was very small. Most of it focused on breath regulation and qi-blood adjustment rather than full-body meridian circulation.

Even in this second life simulation, he had only passively listened to a mental cultivation method inherited from the Poison Hand Medicine King, but had never practiced it. After all…

With a divine skill scroll in hand, why waste time on anything else?

So he simply listened to it once, mentally compared it to his Health-Nurturing Inner Skill, and moved on.

Earlier, when he read that Beiming Divine Skill

 required going against the conventional path, he had been worried. But once he began practicing it, he realized he had been overthinking it.

His internal skill hadn’t even involved many meridians in the first place—what was there to conflict with?

Of course, this didn’t mean there was no danger. It just happened that this first meridian diagram didn’t overlap with any he had practiced before.

Once the path crossed with previously used meridians, it could become extremely risky.

So Fang Han wasn’t thrilled—he simply explained the situation to Cheng Lingsu to put her mind at ease, then refocused his attention and followed the diagram to begin practice.

One complete cycle (zhōutiān)…

Very unfamiliar.

Two cycles…

Still unfamiliar.

Five cycles…

Slowly beginning to feel familiar.

After more than ten cycles…

Finally memorized it.

This meridian diagram had two versions: the absorption diagram and the storage diagram.

The former depicted the route for absorbing others’ internal energy, and the latter showed the path for storing that energy.

Neither of them was for cultivating internal energy on one’s own; therefore, aside from memorizing the routes, they didn’t provide him with any tangible benefits.

His body still felt empty.

To truly cultivate internal energy from Beiming Divine Skill, he would need to follow the internal method described at the very beginning of the silk scroll:

The method of “Beiming True Qi”!

But for now, Fang Han didn’t plan to start that. He wanted to familiarize himself with all thirty-six meridian diagrams first.

Onward!

Hand Jueyin Pericardium Meridian — Ren Vessel!

Hand Shaoyin Heart Meridian — Ren Vessel!

…

He continued to circulate each of the first three meridian diagrams for ten full cycles, memorizing all of them.

Then he reached the fourth meridian diagram, and his expression grew noticeably more serious.

Because this diagram involved the very meridians he had previously used for circulating energy through Health-Nurturing Inner Skill.

After carefully comparing them a few times, he found that while the routes weren’t entirely contradictory, they were very different.

This significantly increased the difficulty.

He turned to Cheng Lingsu and said, “Lingsu, this meridian diagram is key.”

Then, collecting his focus, he carefully began following the route of the diagram.

In truth, even if he hadn’t said anything, Cheng Lingsu wouldn’t have dared relax.

Even with the first three meridian diagrams, although Fang Han had assured her they were harmless, she still stayed alert by his side, just in case.

Now, seeing the grave look on his face with this fourth diagram, she didn’t need any further explanation.

Her clear eyes remained fixed on him, terrified of missing even the smallest sign that might put him in danger.

Fang Han closed his eyes and began circulating according to the diagram.

From the very first breath, he felt something strange.

It felt extremely unnatural.

Because of decades of experience, he had already formed habitual energy flow patterns. Now, to suddenly switch to a new path, his whole system felt disoriented.

But thankfully, his mind was meticulous, and his concentration sharp. So he barely managed to keep it under control.

One cycle…

Two cycles…

Three cycles…

Gradually, he began to feel a bit more comfortable. Fang Han allowed himself to relax slightly.

Due to his intense focus on the previous three diagrams, plus the difficulty of this one, Fang Han already felt quite exhausted. He decided to wrap it up for the day.

But in that brief moment of relaxation, his decades of ingrained instinct kicked in without conscious thought.

This wasn’t like muscle memory—it was even more reflexive, powered by intent. In an instant, his mind reverted to the old energy route.

Completely off-course.

That burst of qi sensation immediately went awry. A wave of intense nausea surged through him, and his breath grew rapid. Fang Han’s brows tightened, and his face turned pale.

Cheng Lingsu instantly noticed something was wrong and immediately used golden needles to redirect his qi!

She jabbed the needles into his bare chest.

After two breaths, frowning slightly as she sensed the imbalance, she quickly applied several more needles into precise acupoints.

Fang Han felt those points alternately contract and release. The chaotic qi flow gradually stabilized.

With control regained, he slowly opened his eyes and exhaled, saying:

“No wonder it says to forget all previous skills. Just a moment of relaxation—and I nearly had a meridian deviation. That was terrifying!”

If Cheng Lingsu hadn’t been here, he probably would’ve coughed up blood on the spot.

📝 [https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/svg/1f4dd.svg] FOOTNOTES

1. 1. 1. 1. 炼精化气 (liàn jīng huà qì)– A Taoist cultivation principle meaning “refining essence to produce qi.” It refers to the transformation of physical vitality into life force or internal energy.

1. 1. 1. 1. 周天 (zhōutiān)– A full cycle of internal energy circulation through the body’s meridians.

1. 1. 1. 1. 自作多情 (zì zuò duō qíng)– Literally “imagining affection where there is none.” Often used humorously to mean “overthinking” or “needlessly worrying.”

1. 1. 1. 1. 悖离 (bèi lí)– A classical term meaning “to go against,” often used in martial arts to describe internal energy conflict.

1. 1. 1. 1. 走火入魔 (zǒu huǒ rù mó)– Literally “fire runs wild and demons enter.” A Taoist and martial arts term for qi deviation—severe internal injury or insanity caused by failed cultivation.

1. 1. 1. 1. 金针引导 (jīn zhēn yǐn dǎo)– A technique using golden acupuncture needles to guide or redirect qi flow, often used in martial arts stories for life-saving treatment.

1. 1. 1. 1. 穴位 (xué wèi)– Acupoints, specific points on the body used in traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture.

1. 1. 1. 1. 求鲜花、求评价、求月票、求评论– “Please send flowers, reviews, monthly votes, and comments” – Standard reader engagement phrases used by Chinese web novel authors.