Longevity starts with choosing Hextech enhancement

Chapter 447 If we are fortunate enough to meet again someday, I wish to share fine wine and have a joyful conversation.

Furthermore, the Black Iron Venerable also mentioned that if one believes their comprehension is good enough, they can also choose to study those unfinished products.

Those unfinished products, including the broken stone tablets, actually contain varying degrees of martial arts essence.

It's just that, overall, none of the thirty-six pieces were more suitable, so it wasn't selected.

Ultimately, how much true meaning one can grasp and how many martial arts techniques one can learn depends entirely on one's comprehension and perseverance.

Meanwhile, among the thirty-six stone tablets on the right side of the Stele Forest, a pseudo-combat test can be conducted.

Each of the stone tablets over there retains a trace of life force, a wisp of divine essence, and even a trace of divine thought.

As long as true essence is injected into the stone tablet, a spirit beast can be generated to fight.

However, warnings are also posted here.

Although you can increase your combat experience and hone your divine sense by challenging the spirits on the stone tablet.

However, the further you go on the stone tablets, the greater the challenge becomes, and the higher the hidden risks become.

If you feel that you are not up to the task, remember not to force yourself to fight back, lest you be unable to defend yourself and get injured instead.

"Oh, there's even a remnant of divine consciousness!"

Xiao Chen had already gained a general understanding of this when he borrowed the library from the Scripture Pavilion.

It is said that only those who become a Nascent Soul Venerable can have the ability to separate their divine thoughts and store them in specific spiritual materials.

Some ancient books mention that such a single divine thought can exert power almost comparable to or even suppress a Nascent Soul True Monarch.

However, there are many differences in the descriptions of divine thoughts in different ancient books.

It's unclear how credible it is, or whether there's any exaggeration involved.

"This looks interesting. Maybe I should give it a try later."

Since he was already here, Xiao Chen felt that he could use these stone tablets to test his current level.

However, before we take the test, let's learn some martial arts techniques first.

He came to the stone tablet on the left and began to comprehend the true meaning of martial arts from the first one.

The front of the stone tablet has been almost completely untouched.

On the rugged surface, there are also some black residues left by decaying moss.

Xiao Chen examined it carefully and found that there were several smaller fragments of quartzite mixed in with the rock.

Overall, it has a primitive and simple aesthetic, but it doesn't seem to have anything to do with martial arts.

"Um... what should we do?"

Xiao Chen thought for a moment, then tried to reach out and touch the stone tablet to feel the true meaning of martial arts within.

However, there is still no discernible connection between the stone tablet and martial arts techniques.

He frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, and then suddenly had a thought.

He immediately mobilized his own Qi and blood, circulating it according to the "Iron-Forging Body Technique".

It must be said that this method is quite effective.

As Xiao Chen's blood and qi trembled and circulated, a will seemed to be awakened within the stone tablet, creating a strange resonance with his blood and qi.

this moment.

He not only saw the stone tablet, but also what seemed to be a blurry human figure reflected in it.

The other party seemed to be practicing some kind of martial arts technique, his figure sometimes standing tall like a pine tree, and sometimes meandering like flowing water.

Every movement was neither too fast nor too slow. It was as swift as a sudden flash of lightning, yet as graceful as the drifting of clouds.

It seems simple, but it contains countless variations, making it unpredictable.

Xiao Chen immediately opened his eyes wide, wanting to see clearly his opponent's every move.

However, the more intently he focused his gaze, the farther he felt from the other person, and the more blurred and indistinct the movements he could see became. Even the outlines of the limbs gradually dissolved, turning into a chaotic blur of light and shadow.

On the contrary, when he tried hard for a long time and finally gave up and no longer wanted to see the specific moves clearly, it was only after that that he realized how difficult it was.

Yet it felt as if I had returned to the other person's side.

You can even faintly hear the wind rustling as your clothes flutter with every movement of your hands and feet, and feel the air currents stirred up when you swing your fists and palms.

Xiao Chen then realized.

The key to understanding the stone tablet lies not in seeing it with your eyes, but in feeling it with your heart.

After realizing this, he immediately gave up memorizing the specific moves and instead focused on experiencing the charm and style of his opponent's every move.

Sometimes, watching excellent martial arts demonstrations is like watching a beautiful dance.

"The Black Iron Venerable's movements are absolutely graceful and elegant, truly beautiful!"

A quarter of an hour later, Xiao Chen couldn't help but nod in praise: "It doesn't look like a martial arts performance at all, but rather like a demonstration of some kind of art."

However, there is a small problem: after watching this dance performance, or rather, martial arts performance...

He seemed to understand something, but couldn't quite put his finger on it.

It was a very mysterious feeling, somewhere between understanding and not understanding, somewhere between enlightenment and not enlightenment.

What to say?

It's like watching someone demonstrate something and your brain seems to have learned it, but your hands still haven't quite grasped it yet.

"Hiss~, it seems like they're looking at it but not really looking at it."

After reading it once, Xiao Chen wanted to recall and review the insights he had just gained.

However, he hadn't memorized a single move, so for a moment he stood there feeling somewhat lost.

"How can we practice like this?"

Xiao Chen frowned slightly again: "We can't just create our own moves based on that indescribable feeling we just experienced, can we?"

He was actually right about that.

This was actually the reason why Venerable Black Iron chose the stone tablet to pass on martial arts techniques; it was also for the purpose of preparing for different cultivators.

The best outcome would be for the person to retain the original essence of martial arts while creating their own moves, or finding the moves that best suit them.

This is the best course of action, and also the direct path to heaven-level cultivation techniques.

The secondary goal is to try to recall and imitate the opponent's moves, adding a little of your own understanding.

This can only be considered a mediocre approach, and the highest level of skill one can acquire is only at the Earth level.

If even imitation feels difficult, turn around and look at the illustrations behind the stone tablet, and learn the fixed moves.

That would be a very bad move; one could only say that one has learned another martial art created by predecessors.

Even with diligent study and practice, and through repeated refinement to the point of mastery, one can only be rated at the Xuan level at most.

If you practice step by step according to the diagram, you will only get the yellow level in the end.

"The most important thing in life is to be happy, and not to make things difficult for yourself."

After a brief attempt, Xiao Chen went straight to the back to see the answer: "There are clearly moves and techniques in the back, why bother?"

More importantly, only Yellow-tier characters can benefit from Hextech Boost!

If he were to actually put in the effort to comprehend a Heaven-level martial art on his own, not to mention how much more time it would take.

In actual combat, its power may not even be as strong as that of a Yellow-level weapon.

Perhaps for others, doing this is a last resort, a choice made out of desperation.

However, for Xiao Chen, practicing directly and meticulously following the illustrations was the best approach.

It is also a wise choice to maximize profits.

Therefore, he ignored the words of advice on the back of the stone tablet and began to recite the mental techniques and moves on the back one by one.

Xiao Chen soon discovered that these martial arts techniques seemed to have been specially selected.

Many of them overemphasize or highlight one aspect, thus neglecting the others.

In other words, their function is more like targeted training to improve oneself.

Rather than calling these thirty-six martial arts techniques, they are more like thirty-six ways to continue forging oneself through actual combat.

However, it's not to say that none of them can be used in actual combat.

After comparing them, Xiao Chen discovered that three of the martial arts techniques were relatively comprehensive and could be used in combat.

These are the Thunderclap Fist, which focuses on rapid advances; the Returning Wind Willow Palm, which emphasizes building up momentum for defense and counterattack; and the Burning Heaven Breaking Force, which pursues extreme explosive power.

It's not hard to tell from their names that the former is a relatively rare lightning-based martial art.

Next was a wood-type martial art that was a good match, and finally a powerful fire-type martial art.

Of these three martial arts techniques, Xiao Chen's favorite is the "Burning Heaven and Breaking Limit Force".

In theory, it would be easier for him to cultivate the "Returning Wind and Willow Palm" technique, since he had recently used a wood-elemental Dao-enhancing crystal to greatly strengthen his understanding of the Great Dao of Wood.

However, he doesn't particularly like the defensive counter-attacking style of fighting.

In contrast, Xiao Chen still preferred to charge in with his fists and smash the enemy's head in.

It's just a bit of a shame that many of the martial arts techniques here are only fourth-tier techniques.

Among them were the "Thunderbolt Stepping Void Fist" and "Burning Heaven Breaking Limit Force" that he had his eye on.

Therefore, for now, I can only memorize the diagrams behind the two stone tablets completely, and then practice them when I have time after I make a breakthrough in physical cultivation.

As for the remaining third-tier martial arts skills, Xiao Chen felt there was no need to practice them anymore.

He is now almost just a short period of time away from becoming a fourth-tier body cultivator, and he needs to focus on breaking through.

Under such circumstances, it would definitely be better to go straight for "Burning Heaven Breaking Limit Force".

It is worth mentioning that, in Xiao Chen's own opinion, the fourth-tier martial skill left behind by the Black Iron Venerable was superior to all the yellow-tier martial skills he had seen before.

He had originally copied a fourth-tier martial arts manual from the Tiangang Sect and kept it in his storage ring for future use.

However, it seems that it can be replaced now.

"It seems we'll have to use our old methods for testing this time."

Xiao Chen turned to look at the stone tablet on the right: "But it doesn't matter, just consider it as experiencing what it's like to fight against a spirit beast."

As warned by the Black Iron Venerable, the strength of these stone tablets increases sequentially from front to back.

Therefore, to be on the safe side, he chose to start testing from the first stone tablet.

Following the instructions, Xiao Chen placed both hands on the stone tablet and then slowly poured his true essence into it.

Immediately, a pattern on the stone tablet slowly lit up from bottom to top, and at the same time, many cave restrictions appeared around the stone tablet.

A temporary battle space of about ten zhang in diameter was immediately formed.

Immediately afterwards, a phantom constructed from true essence gradually solidified in mid-air, eventually transforming into a burly man dressed in tight-fitting short-sleeved clothing.

The other person had no facial features, but their body was extremely exaggerated, as if their entire body was made up of muscle blocks.

Then, the burly man actually bowed to Xiao Chen with his hands clasped in a polite gesture.

Then, with a strange cry, it charged forward. "Huh, that's all?"

Xiao Chen immediately sensed that the opponent in the first stone tablet was only at the early Foundation Establishment stage.

He had a sudden thought and wanted to use magic to end this boring battle directly.

Then he discovered that his spells were ineffective here.

Neither offensive nor defensive spells can be used.

Even the simplest basic spells won't work.

This means that Xiao Chen can only rely on his martial arts skills or simply use brute force to win battles.

The reason he chose brute force was because he could feel that he still possessed a strong body and abundant strength.

"Oh, I see."

After Xiao Chen understood the rules, he became even more interested. He immediately won the battle with a punch and then began to challenge the next stone tablet.

Due to the vast difference in strength, there's not much to say about the first few opponents; they could be easily crushed simply by the difference in strength.

In just a quarter of an hour, he conquered eighteen stone tablets in a row and immediately began his nineteenth challenge.

"Oh, so you've already encountered a Nascent Soul level opponent so quickly?"

Xiao Chen looked at the Spirit Master in the middle of the square, which was faintly emanating a fourth-order aura, and finally perked up.

He struck a standard opening pose: "Bring it on!"

The other party did not respond, but simply performed a standard fist salute as usual, and then began with the first move of the fourth-level martial art "Thunderbolt Stepping on the Void Fist" - Cloud Surge and Thunder Roar.

It's worth mentioning that the movements of the first eighteen spirits are rather stiff.

He only appears to be full of vigor and energy. Although he can use low-level martial arts, he is still a brute.

However, this nineteenth spirit is different from others.

It seemed to possess a trace of martial arts spirit, and even the martial arts techniques it displayed were quite convincing, reminiscent of the style Xiao Chen had sensed on the stone tablet on the left.

In this way, the Cloud Surge Thunderclap move was just like that of a genuine fourth-order body cultivator.

As the wind from the punch passed by, a thunderous sound even seemed to appear out of nowhere.

Because Xiao Chen has not yet mastered the fourth-tier martial arts.

Therefore, he still used his most familiar third-tier "Nine Transformations Dragon Technique" as his response: "Yinglong Collapses Mountain!"

Neither side chose to dodge, and they collided head-on.

"Thump! Smack!"

At the moment of impact, there was a muffled thud, and then the spirit was sent flying backward, crashing into the barrier wall ten feet away.

In terms of pure strength, Xiao Chen was already no less than a true fourth-order cultivator.

Moreover, although he was using a third-tier martial skill, he had the enhancement of Hextech.

With the combination of these two factors, even when facing a Nascent Soul stage Spirit Master, they are still not at a disadvantage.

However, Xiao Chen also felt a certain amount of pressure.

Although it appears that he is standing still and not retreating an inch, seemingly in complete control.

However, when he directly withstood a fourth-tier martial skill, he also experienced a tremendous recoil force, causing his arms to tremble slightly.

Moreover, the spirits controlling the previous eighteen stone tablets were all defeated in a single move.

This time, although he knocked the opponent away, he failed to break them up.

After the spirit slid off the barrier wall and fell to the ground, it actually sprang back to its feet, clearly still capable of fighting.

The two sides then exchanged two more blows before the spirit was finally shattered.

Then the twentieth and twenty-first stone tablets were also removed in turn.

The former took less than nine rounds, while the latter took almost thirty rounds.

"Therefore, my current martial arts level is already high enough to reliably defeat ordinary early-stage Nascent Soul cultivators."

Xiao Chen was fairly satisfied with the result, after all, this was equivalent to fighting across a major realm, and the opponent also possessed a fourth-tier martial skill.

It's easy to imagine what would happen after he broke through to the fourth level of body cultivation.

With its powerful blood and energy, and the enhancement of Hextech, it is fully capable of directly competing with a Nascent Soul Grand Perfection cultivator.

"But based on this situation, it seems unlikely that things will continue."

After thinking for a moment, Xiao Chen decided to try his hand at the twenty-second stone tablet.

This time, the spirit he faced had become a minor realm stronger, reaching the mid-Nascent Soul stage.

The martial arts skills he used also improved significantly, reaching the fourth-tier Earth level, which can be described as a multi-faceted enhancement.

The two sides exchanged blows for over two hundred rounds.

Fortunately, Xiao Chen eventually won again after a hard-fought battle.

In reality, he wouldn't have had such a difficult time in actual combat.

The key issue is that magic is not allowed; only pure martial arts skills can be used in combat.

Therefore, in order to avoid getting injured during the trial, Xiao Chen was unknowingly limited and could not unleash his full combat power.

This naturally makes things more difficult.

After all, there's a significant difference in difficulty between winning without taking damage and winning without taking any damage.

"Oh, I feel like that's the end of it."

After a fierce battle, Xiao Chen also felt somewhat tired: "Anyway, judging from the current situation, it seems unlikely that we will be able to defeat all the Spirit Masters."

"Let's stop here at the twenty-two stone tablets first."

Of course, if he is willing to continue, he is also very confident that he can advance to the twenty-fourth stele and even try the twenty-fifth stele.

He should even be able to take down the twenty-eighth stone tablet if he could use magic.

According to the observed pattern, these stone tablets will advance one realm every three tablets, and one major realm every nine tablets.

The twenty-eighth stone tablet corresponds to a spirit master at the Great Perfection of the Nascent Soul stage.

Xiao Chen was still very confident of victory against an opponent of this level.

However, things become a bit hard to say what will happen after that.

Although theoretically speaking, it's unlikely that a Nascent Soul level Spirit Master would appear here; that would be too exaggerated.

However, based on the clues on the stone tablet, it can be inferred that divine thoughts will appear after qi and blood and spirit.

Xiao Chen had already experienced the difference between Qi and Spirit in the initial rigid and inflexible martial arts of the Spirit Control system, and the increasingly flexible and skillful martial arts of the middle stage.

If he guessed correctly.

The last few stone tablets will likely contain spirits at the Nascent Soul Great Perfection level, combined with Heaven-level martial arts that have been cultivated to the Great Perfection stage, and a trace of divine thought from the Black Iron Venerable.

This configuration represents almost the maximum combat power that a fourth-tier cultivator can unleash.

If the divine sense left behind by the Black Iron Venerable is very strong, then it will be even more difficult.

Thinking of this, Xiao Chen felt it was better to stop here.

I'll save the remaining stone tablets for when I come back next time and challenge them again.

"Let's go and take a look around the Blood Burning Hall and the cave storeroom first. After all, I'm here to find a breakthrough spiritual item, and one should never forget one's original intention."

Xiao Chen immediately turned around and went to the rightmost side hall.

In appearance, the Blood Burning Hall is almost identical to the Body Tempering Hall, except for the words on the plaque at the entrance.

Once you push open the door and enter, the layout inside is almost identical.

It also features two rows of thick pillars and a tall, massive cauldron.

So much so that Xiao Chen almost thought he had wandered into the wrong place from time to time.

He even took two steps back to double-check the name of the entrance to the hall.

"Oh, this is the Blood Burning Palace."

Xiao Chen glanced at the giant cauldron that was almost identical to the one in the mold, and then looked down and found the small stone tablet with words on it in the same place below.

Fortunately, the Black Iron Venerable did indeed leave an introduction here.

The reason why the right side is called the Burning Blood Hall is because a special fourth-tier spirit wine called Burning Blood Brew is sealed in the giant cauldron inside the hall.

Drinking this wine is like swallowing burning coals; even a physical cultivator would find it difficult to withstand.

However, within three hours of drinking it, it can greatly improve the efficiency of practicing martial arts.

According to the Black Iron Venerable's personal experience, only two catties are needed for the first time to achieve the best effect.

For the first five times, you can maintain the effect by drinking an extra two jin (1 kg) each time.

However, from the sixth to the tenth time, even if one drank more than ten kilograms each time, only half of the effects could be maintained.

Further down the line, the decline becomes even more severe, to the point that it's barely better than nothing.

Moreover, the Black Iron Venerable specifically noted that this wine was absolutely awful!
He wouldn't even accept it for free if it weren't for improving the efficiency of his martial arts training.

Finally, at the bottom of the stone tablet, it is written: "If we are fortunate enough to meet again someday, I wish to bring fine wine and drink with you."

These characters are written in a very bold and unrestrained style. Just looking at them, you can almost see a burly man with a resolute face, making a cheerful invitation.

"Hmm~, this might be a bit difficult."

If they have the chance to meet in the future, Xiao Chen would naturally be happy to share a drink and have a good time with the other person.

The problem is that there are probably tens of thousands of years between the two, or at least tens of thousands of years.

Unless the Black Iron Venerable lives long enough, we probably won't see him again.

In the Blood Burning Hall, one also needs to use runes to enter the giant cauldron.

The difference this time is that there is only one rune, so there is no need to consider which one to press.

Xiao Chen raised his hand and gently pressed it on the rune, then followed the suction force directly into the giant cauldron.

Then I saw that there were actually eight jars of spirit wine inside.

Each wine jar was ten feet wide and more than six feet high.

One of them seemed to have been opened before and then resealed; it did indeed feel several hundred pounds lighter when I picked it up.

The rest were all intact, and each jar was almost full.

If nothing unexpected happens, it should be that the Black Iron Venerable made eight jars of Blood-Burning Brew in one go back then.

After tasting it, only a portion of what was needed for cultivation was consumed, and the rest of the spiritual wine was left behind.

Or rather, they were all abandoned here.

"If this wine were sold, it should fetch several million spirit stones."

Xiao Chen estimated for a moment, then sighed, "He really is a Nascent Soul Venerable. He's so generous. He doesn't even care about a million spirit stones."

(End of this chapter)