CHAPTER 58: CHAPTER 52 BLOOD TRANSPORTING PERIOD

Zhou Leng raised both hands, shaping Tai Chi as if cradling a sphere.

The water from the showerhead gathered on Zhou Leng’s hands like iron filings attracted to a magnet, forming a water sphere.

Zhou Leng rotated his hands, causing the water sphere to spin and grow larger.

Under the light, the water sphere shimmered, resembling the rotating disco ball of a bygone era.

The water sphere grew larger, faintly resembling a planet made of water.

It was a step beyond merely holding water in the palm.

He held the universe in his hands.

Crack...

The water sphere reached its limit, then shattered, sending water droplets everywhere.

Zhou Leng turned off the water valve, took a step forward, and manipulated his True Qi.

The water droplets flew from his body, then hung in the air like suspended rain, glistening before falling uniformly.

The surface of his body instantly dried.

Zhou Leng returned to the Martial Arts Dojo of Class 01, noticing it was still early, and began training with demonized equipment.

As classmates gradually arrived, he sent a message to Instructor Deng.

"Instructor, my True Qi has already ’formed a Round Body Shield and Inner Qi Overflow,’ and I wish to schedule the Chief Instructor to assist as I advance to the Blood Transporting Period."

"Hmm? Didn’t you just achieve perfection less than a week ago?"

"It seems I’ve been consuming a lot of pills recently, so my True Qi has grown swiftly."

"Alright. However, have you prepared Replenishing Essence Pills and Blood Replenishing Pills?"

"Not yet, so I’m scheduling in advance to advance as soon as I gather one Replenishing Essence Pill and ten Blood Replenishing Pills."

Deng Zhijue replied, "Your future martial arts scholarship includes Replenishing Essence Pills and Blood Replenishing Pills. I’ll cover you for now. Once your scholarship arrives, you can repay me. With your current True Qi at perfection, there’s no need to waste time. The earlier you enter the Blood Transport, the sooner you’ll strengthen."

"Thank you, Instructor!"

"Come, I’ll contact Chief Instructor Huang immediately to assist you!"

Soon, the three arrived at the Meditation Room, Deng Zhijue stayed at the door while Huang Jingqiu led Zhou Leng inside.

Inside the Meditation Room, there was only a stack of mats.

The two laid down the mats and sat facing each other.

Huang Jingqiu said, "For a newcomer, initially circulating Qi into the blood is extremely risky. Any slight misstep could cause either a rupture in the blood vessels or a backflow of Qi blood. I will protect you with Innate True Qi and guide you, ensuring minimal risk."

"I trouble the Chief Instructor."

"Have you mastered the Blood Transport Jue?"

"I know it inside out."

"Recite it for me."

"Qi rises from the Dantian, circulates through the veins...converges in the heart, transforms in the new meridian...fuses Qi into blood, reaching all directions...Qi blood surges, orderly and constrained..."

"Good. I will shield you with Innate True Qi. When I say ’begin,’ use the Mystic Tide Technique as your foundation to guide your Qi into the blood."

Both extended their arms, their four palms touching.

Zhou Leng felt two streams of warm True Qi enter his meridians, roaming through his body and attaching to his blood vessels.

Finally, a large amount of True Qi entered his heart.

"Begin."

Zhou Leng immediately focused his mind and first circulated his Qi.

As the True Qi flowed throughout his body, Zhou Leng gradually directed more Qi into his heart.

The Qi continually gathered, reforming his meridians in accordance with the Blood Transport Jue.

The slow changes in his meridians affected his flesh.

The continuous pricking pain attacked his mind.

Clenching his teeth, Zhou Leng continued using the Blood Transport Jue.

The pain intensified.

Suddenly, indescribable pain crashed over him, then a new Qi meridian formed.

Abundant True Qi entered his heart, coursing through his aorta, flowing to his entire body.

At first, there was a trickling pain, but soon it became a soothing coolness.

It felt as if he had drunk a mouthful of ice water in the height of summer, with a cool sensation wafting through his body.

He didn’t know how much time passed, but his inner vision, vivid as a painting, revealed that in addition to the original deep blue True Qi network, a new red Qi blood network appeared.

Qi and blood combined, flowing turbulently within his blood vessels.

Zhou Leng distinctly sensed slight anomalies in his blood vessels, whether broken, blocked, or covered with plaques.

Yet under the impact of Qi blood and the protection of Innate True Qi, the plaques dissolved, blockages cleared, and damage healed.

The debris within his blood vessels flowed with the Qi blood, expelled into his excretory system.

After circulating ninety-nine times through eighty-one cycles, Zhou Leng only felt relief all over.

He even felt a transcendent out-of-body experience.

"You can conclude now." Huang Jingqiu’s voice drifted over.

Zhou Leng gradually finished his practice, letting the True Qi return to him.

Zhou Leng opened his eyes.

Huang Jingqiu withdrew his hands and said, "Try using your technique on your own."

Zhou Leng closed his eyes again, employing the Blood Transport Jue.

True Qi flowed smoothly into his heart, coursing through his entire body.

After nine cycles, Zhou Leng finished and opened his eyes again.

"Any issues?"

"Everything is normal," Zhou Leng replied.

Huang Jingqiu said, "Good. Next, follow the steps and cultivate steadily."

"In the Qi Blood Realm, the four stages of Qi, Blood, Body, and Power only have realms from entry to perfection in the Qi Nourishing Period and External Skills."

"After that, the training methods for Blood Transport, Body Refinement, and Life Force aren’t as complex as True Qi cultivation, with only early, middle, and late stages."

"In the early Blood Transport, Qi and blood are shallowly integrated, so only lines of purple will form along the veins on the skin."

"In the middle Blood Transport, the integration deepens, forming large areas of purple nets."

"By the late Blood Transport, Qi and blood are fully integrated, and concentrated True Qi areas will form patches of purple. When entering the Body Refining Stage, the integration of Qi, blood, and body will cause the purple to dissipate."

"When your early Blood Transport stabilizes, you can learn Lightweight Skill."

"Lightweight Skill is divided into Lifting and Leaping and Speeding, but it consumes a lot of True Qi..."

"At this stage, students who have consumed many pills will grow rapidly with their accumulated background..."

"Our country is the only one with this ’Medicinal Supplement’ National Divine Technique, so as long as you don’t misuse medication, it won’t accumulate pill toxins and will increase efficacy..."

Huang Jingqiu explained more precautions regarding the Blood Transport period, then led Zhou Leng out of the Meditation Room.

Deng Zhijue handed him prepared pills.

Deng Zhijue advised, "Take one of each now; there’s no need to dissolve them through cultivation; then take one Blood Replenishing Pill daily."

Zhou Leng swallowed a Replenishing Essence Pill and a Blood Replenishing Pill, feeling warmth like a furnace emanate from his abdomen, flooding throughout his body.

After Huang Jingqiu left, Deng Zhijue looked around to ensure no one was near and whispered, "There’s something you need to be prepared for."

Zhou Leng looked at Deng Zhijue.

Deng Zhijue said, "This month’s exam is likely the Eight Cities Joint Exam, hosted by eighteen ordinary martial arts academies. Due to the old provincial names of the eight cities, it’s customarily called the Mountains and Rivers, Rivers and Lakes Joint Exam."

"I’ve heard about it before," Zhou Leng showed curiosity.

Deng Zhijue said, "The Top Ten Martial Arts academies are formidable, with abundant resources, pressuring ordinary martial arts academies. The ordinary academies in these eight cities, using the old provincial name tradition, hold a joint exam known as the Eight Cities Union Exam to select talent."

"Are the rewards for this exam more than the usual monthly exams?"

"Much more. The first prize in a regular monthly exam at a Martial Arts Hall usually rewards pills worth around 10,000 base currency. In comparison, the Eight Cities Joint Exam’s first prize includes a 50,000 base as additional rewards in pills, along with the martial arts academics’ rewards, and there may even be a chance to obtain some rare pills."

"I must prepare thoroughly."

"The resources for regular martial arts academy’s joint exams are limited, but the rewards are significant. Although the academy doesn’t have the ability to mobilize the ’Resource Demon City,’ it will likely proceed as usual and compete in the Shuizhou Demon City."

Deng Zhijue chuckled, "Obtaining something from the Celestial Ladder is not that easy, as it’s something fiercely contested for across the Ten Realms."