148: Chapter 86: Primordial Chaos, Phoenix Approaching 148: Chapter 86: Primordial Chaos, Phoenix Approaching Xue Daoyong had expended a great deal of effort to maintain the expression on his face.

He placed his hand on Li Guanyi’s shoulder and felt that extremely pure Qi Force.

At this level of martial artists, Jin Qi could burst forth from all eight meridians surrounding the body.

Theoretically, one could move unhindered and remain unscathed.

Wearing a set of armor, no number of martial artists from the lower realms, even a hundred, could overpower a martial artist.

Even if his limbs were restrained, the Qi force could still burst forth from his shoulders and back to fatally strike his opponents.

After his initial shock, Xue Daoyong’s first reaction was concern.

He reached out and grabbed Li Guanyi’s wrist, channeling his Inner Qi into him, and frowned slightly, saying, “Your rapid breakthrough, has someone persuaded you to practice some expedient Magic Skills?”

In his youth, when he traveled across various regions, Ying Country was still called Wei Country.

He had also encountered practitioners from the Demon Sect on the borders of the Western Regions, who would rush at him, their Inner Qi exploding, and their flesh bounding towards him, particularly those who would ingest elixir pills to fill their flesh with deadly poison.

Upon explosion, they could injure even a martial artist of a higher realm if care was not taken.

At this moment, he worried that Li Guanyi had been overly eager for success, risking his own body.

“Do not, because of temporary progress, ruin the foundation of your cultivation.” Yet as his Inner Qi circulated, the elder felt that the young man before him had strong muscles and bones, and a vigorous Qi mechanism.

The condensed Inner Qi pulsated and changed unpredictably, surprisingly pure.

This was certainly not a product of reckless advancement.

This person had a solid foundation, among the top ten he had encountered in his hundred years of travel.

The few others were already legends, including one of the two Innates from the Taoist sect, who had interacted with Xue Daoyong in his youth.

At that time, Xue Daoyong had felt that Taiji Soft Cloud Skill’s foundation was profound and mysterious, yet now, he felt that Li Guanyi’s foundation was no weaker than his.

However, Li Guanyi was a few years older than that Innate during that time.

That person was only ten years old at the time.

Suddenly, Xue Daoyong realized the duration of this young man’s cultivation.

From Body Casting,

to crossing Qi Condensation, reaching Meridian.

Less than ten days!

Whereas that young Taoist back then had already been cultivating for six years.

Xue Daoyong remained silent, rubbed his brow, and asked, “How did you achieve this?”

He looked at Li Guanyi.

Before coming here, Li Guanyi had considered how to explain it.

He had thought about revealing the secret realm of General Xue, or mentioning the Tiger Roar Bone Forging Skills, even considering bringing up Mr.

Siming directly, claiming he had met a highly skilled person.

However, after careful consideration, he dismissed these thoughts.

The more one talks, the more likely they are to slip up.

For an experienced old hand like Xue Daoyong.

The more one says, the easier it is to reveal what is concealed.

Thus, there was only one choice for Li Guanyi.

He responded solemnly, “I simply practiced cultivation, meditated, and Brother Yue Qianfeng taught me a set of Qi Condensing Skills, and it just happened.”

“Just practiced cultivation?”

“Just practiced cultivation.”

Xue Daoyong’s mouth twisted slightly, feeling as if he had wasted a hundred years of his life.

Li Guanyi became contemplative, then spoke in a humble, earnest tone,

“I think, perhaps, I might have a slight talent.”

Xue Daoyong’s vision darkened.

The old man took a deep breath and let it out slowly to stabilize his mental state.

With his hands behind his back, he nodded slightly without pretending to be anything but spoke teasingly, “What do you mean by ‘a bit of talent’?

With such aptitude, you are truly exceptional.

I haven’t seen anyone like you before!”

“You may well be proud of yourself.”

“In these hundred years, as I traveled under the heavens, I have met many geniuses.

Xiao Wuliang charged into battle at thirteen, Taiping Duke traveled a thousand miles in battle at twenty and beheaded tens of thousands; these are all exceptional fierce generals.

Xiao belongs to a noble family, but Taiping Duke was born to farmers, only starting cultivation after joining the army.”

“I can assure you, your aptitude is no less inferior to theirs!”

Li Guanyi said, “Taiping Duke’s home is in…”

Xue Daoyong answered, “Exactly, in the eighteenth state of Jiangnan.”

“It’s said that when Taiping Duke was young, he rolled up his pants to plant rice and pick lotus pods to eat.

Born into immense poverty, he wore two thin pieces of clothing a year.

Once during a great snowfall in Jiangnan, he froze by the roadside.

They say a girl gave him some pastries to eat then draped her cape over him, which allowed him to survive the winter.”

“If not for that, there would not have been such a brave general in the world.”

“Even though he was so poor back then, his family enjoyed a moment of wealth and status after he rose to fame.

Unfortunately, that big fire ten years ago…”

The senior didn’t continue.

Li Guanyi gathered himself.

Xue Daoyong led Li Guanyi to the inner courtyard’s Martial Arts Arena and said, “Now that you have such a foundation, I should teach you about the subsequent stages of cultivation.

After Entering Realm, the first level, there are three stages: ‘Body Casting,’ ‘Qi Condensation,’ ‘Meridian.’

“After these, the three coalesce into one, which is Ascending.”

“Nowadays, with the world in turmoil and frequent conflicts among countries, the Martial World often uses military ranks to measure the stage of a martial artist’s realm.

A martial artist upon first entering can be a squad leader in the frontier, commanding five recruits, entitled to meat in their diet; those who have reached the second level can become Colonels, with a maximum rank of a seventh-degree martial officer.”

“When retiring from the frontier, they can become the County Magistrate of a county.”

“Provision of a residence and armor makes them notable figures within a city.”

“Guan Yi, do you know the difference between the second level and first entering?”

Li Guanyi shook his head.

He had killed a martial artist of the second realm level, but the first one had been when Yue Qianfeng punched and absorbed the Primordial Qi, causing those martial artists to rely only on their physical bodies; Li Guanyi additionally had the power of the Dharma Form, thus winning the fight; the second had been quickly resolved with swift and lethal methods, without seeing detailed techniques.