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Chapter 189 It's impossible to lose money; the diagram will help me earn it back (2 words, update 15)

Fang Qingyu slowly withdrew his gaze, and the chilling dark golden lightning and fire in his eyes receded like the tide, leaving only a profound calm.

He glanced at Jiang Wei, who was staring at him in astonishment, her mouth slightly agape, having even forgotten to suck on her lollipop.

A very faint smile involuntarily curved the corners of her lips.

Fang Qingyu clenched his fists.

The joints emitted a slight popping sound, and a completely new sense of power, unlike anything before, flowed and settled between the flesh and bones.

It's an amazing feeling.

Before this, both thunder and flames were attack characteristics derived from circulating qi and blood, stimulating qi, and then being transformed through specific martial arts techniques.

They are more like an "outer garment" or "weapon" attached to power.

Now, the power of "Thunderous Radiance," which combines the explosive power of lightning with the true meaning of annihilation by calamity, seems to have been deeply imprinted in his bones, his will, and even every inch of his flesh and blood.

It is no longer simply a product dependent on martial arts.

It's more like an integral part of one's own power, as natural as breathing, as surging as blood.

This is a transformation originating from the very source of life.

A deeper, more direct control over power.

"As if it were something they were born with."

Fang Qingyu murmured, savoring this wondrous feeling.

However, the biggest surprise was not the improvement brought about by the fusion of the two martial arts techniques, but the unprecedented possibilities revealed to him by the [Diagram]!
The two Great Sun-level sword techniques were able to merge and deduce, giving birth to an even more powerful core skill.

What about movement techniques? What about physical skills?

Is it even possible to merge visualization techniques and qi and blood cultivation methods?

This thought, like a spark thrown into dry tinder, instantly ignited the light in Fang Qingyu's eyes, making it even brighter and more intense.

I couldn't wait to immerse myself in the [map].

【Core Skill 1: Nine Heavens Primordial Chaos Visualization Technique - Four Realms Lv.3 (0/800)】

【Core Skill 2: Crimson Bright Nine Revolutions Jade Scripture - Third Revolution Lv.3 (0/800)】

【Core Skill 3: Thunderous World-Burning Slash Lv.1 (0/1000)】

really!

The previously parallel skills, 【Thunder Strike Eight Slashes】 and 【Blazing Blade】, have disappeared, replaced by a brand new core skill with a name that carries the majestic power of heaven.

[Thunderous World-Burning Slash]!
Furthermore, the experience points required for its upgrade are as high as 1000, far exceeding any previous Great Sun-level martial art.

"Such a high barrier to entry"

Fang Qingyu felt a slight chill, but it was quickly replaced by immense excitement. "However, it's absolutely worth it!"

Even before he had actually tested the sword, he could clearly sense that the new sword technique born from this fusion contained a power level several times stronger than the previous two techniques when used individually!
This is a qualitative leap!
"Hey, snap out of it?"

A crisp voice, tinged with a hint of annoyance, rang out, interrupting Fang Qingyu's thoughts.

He looked up and saw that Jiang Wei had put away her surprised expression and returned to her usual indifferent demeanor, as if nothing could arouse her much interest.

But a hint of inquiry still lingered in those clear, large eyes.

"You just grasped the true meaning of martial arts?" Jiang Wei tilted her head, her tone filled with certainty.

"The true meaning of martial arts?" Fang Qingyu felt a little unfamiliar with this term.

"Hmm." Jiang Wei nodded, a "I knew it" expression on her face, and explained, "That's a power that only martial arts grandmasters can fully master. At the Tongxuan martial artist stage, only a very few people with exceptional talent and an extremely perfect understanding of their own martial arts have the opportunity to comprehend a trace of the 'true meaning' from it. Once mastered, their combat power will undergo a qualitative change, far surpassing that of ordinary Tongxuan peak practitioners."

Fang Qingyu slowly got up, stretched his muscles and bones, making a crackling sound, and felt the surging power within his body, as if it could summon thunder and fire at any moment.

Looking at Jiang Wei, he asked the question that had been bothering him: "Is it possible to comprehend the true meaning of Qi and Blood Techniques, Visualization Techniques, Body Techniques, and Hard Skills as well?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Wei was slightly taken aback, seemingly not expecting Fang Qingyu to ask this.

She lowered her head, frowning, her small face unusually showing a serious expression of thought, before finally raising her head after a moment:

"Hard skills and movement techniques, of course. The true meaning of fully comprehending hard skills will greatly enhance the essence of your physical body. For example, you now have the opportunity to comprehend the 'True Meaning of Immovability' and the 'True Meaning of Annihilation,' etc., which will transform your defense and strength foundation. The true meaning of movement techniques is related to the mysteries of 'extreme speed,' 'shifting,' and 'illusion and reality,' which can completely transform your movement techniques."

She paused, then pointed her little finger at Fang Qingyu's dantian and brow: "But... Qi and blood techniques and visualization techniques won't work."

"Why?" Fang Qingyu pressed.

“Because, strictly speaking, they are not ‘martial arts techniques’,” Jiang Wei explained, her tone carrying an understanding of the ancient system. “The Qi and Blood Technique is the ‘root technique’ that ignites the furnace of life and forges the origin of Qi and Blood, while the Visualization Technique is the ‘divine technique’ that condenses the spirit and will, communicates with heaven and earth, and forges the soul. They are the cornerstone and source of a martial artist’s power system, the engine that drives all ‘martial arts techniques’. They themselves are the carriers and manifestations of ‘intention’, the prototypes of higher-level power. The process of cultivating them is to constantly forge, condense, and sublimate your ‘intention’—the ‘intention’ of Qi and Blood, the ‘intention’ of the spirit. When they are strong enough, they can naturally support higher-level ‘true intentions of martial arts techniques’, and even in the future, they themselves can evolve into your own ‘Dao’ and ‘Domain’.”

Looking at Fang Qingyu's thoughtful expression, she couldn't help but roll her eyes slightly, with a hint of sarcasm: "Besides, who in their right mind would do what you did, at the Tongxuan stage, abandoning the true meaning of hard skills and rushing to comprehend the true meaning of sword techniques first!"

"Oh?" Fang Qingyu raised an eyebrow. "Is there a difference?"

"Of course!" Jiang Wei's face turned serious. "The true meaning of martial arts represents the ultimate offensive technique! It can indeed give you terrifying destructive power at this stage, just like you are now. But..."

She changed the subject, her tone tinged with disappointment: "Have you thought about this? The [Eight Slashes of Thunder] and [World-Burning Blade] you're currently learning, even at the Great Sun level, are only top-tier martial arts techniques for the martial artist stage. Once you break through to the Martial Arts Grandmaster realm, you'll encounter even higher-level 'Grandmaster' or 'Martial Saint' martial arts techniques! The power and profundity of those techniques will far surpass any of what you're learning now! At that time, you'll likely need to switch and learn stronger offensive martial arts techniques. While the true meaning of the sword technique you've comprehended now is powerful, its foundation will be relatively weak, and its potential may be limited."

She pointed to Fang Qingyu's body: "But the true meaning of hard skills is different! It strengthens your 'physical body' itself! It is the 'container' and 'foundation' that bears all your power! No matter what new offensive martial arts or movement techniques you learn in the future, you will need this powerful physical body to support and utilize them! The boost brought by hard skills will accompany you throughout your martial arts career. It is a 'core asset' that you do not need to replace! You only need to keep practicing new hard skills and adding new true meanings to make your physical body stronger and stronger, more and more incredible!"

Fang Qingyu listened quietly, without showing the regret or annoyance that Jiang Wei had expected. Instead, he revealed a calm and confident smile.

"I see. I understand now." Fang Qingyu nodded, his gaze sweeping over the brand-new [Thunderous World-Burning Slash] on the [Illustration].

Although Jiang Wei is right.

But Fang Qingyu doesn't feel like he's lost out now.

This new sword technique is clearly far superior to the previous two martial arts techniques.

It's more like a martial arts technique used by a grandmaster!
Otherwise, requiring 1000 experience points to upgrade from Lv.1 to Lv.2 would be too outrageous.

"Don't worry, I will certainly not slack off in hard skills. I will also master the true meaning of hard skills as soon as possible."

Fang Qingyu even thought of movement techniques: "There are movement techniques too. It seems necessary to improve one as soon as possible and try to comprehend its true meaning."

Thinking about the qualitative change in speed and evasion that might come with perfecting his movement technique, Fang Qingyu's heart was filled with anticipation once again.

Completely ignoring Jiang Wei, who was nearly petrified beside him.

The next morning.

Simulated morning light shines through the window lattices inside the blessed land.

The communicator remained silent; no summons to enter the "Abyss" had been received.

Fang Qingyu and Jiang Wei got up early.

Having experienced the Songdu Pit incident, Fang Qingyu's current merit points have reached a terrifying level.

6618.

Fang Qingyu plans to exchange for another Great Sun-level movement technique to prepare for the true meaning of movement techniques in the future.

The two returned to the movement technique area of ​​the Martial Arts Pavilion.

After careful selection, Fang Qingyu finally chose a Great Sun-level movement technique called "The Swift Shadow Step".

His profile emphasizes his extreme explosive speed and ghostly movement over short distances, which, combined with his formidable physical strength, seem to complement each other perfectly.

Holding the book containing the "Fleeting Shadow Steps" manual, Fang Qingyu handed it to Jiang Wei: "How about taking a look at this?"

Jiang Wei took the book and looked at it.

Immediately, her brows furrowed slightly.

She opened her eyes, handed the crystal card back to Fang Qingyu, and gently shook her head, her voice clear yet carrying an undisguised disappointment:

"No. This so-called 'Great Sun-class' is highly questionable."

"Huh?" Fang Qingyu was taken aback.

Jiang Wei, her face serious, explained, "I mentioned it yesterday. The standards for martial arts rankings in your modern system are vague and not very strict. Many martial arts techniques labeled 'Great Sun Level' wouldn't even meet the true Great Sun Level threshold in ancient times." Seeing Fang Qingyu's questioning gaze, she continued, "The true, ancient Great Sun Level offensive martial arts, at their peak, are marked by the presence of a nascent form of the true meaning of 'capable of striking the Great Sun'! This means that if a cultivator reaches this legendary level, their attack would be powerful enough to threaten the sun in the sky!"

"A true Great Sun-level movement technique, when perfected, possesses the power to chase the sun!"

"A true Great Sun-level hard skill, at its peak, allows the physical body to withstand the Great Sun itself!!"

Jiang Wei's tone carried a sense of nostalgia for ancient glory: "Of course, this is only the highest level of symbolism and potential direction. At the martial artist stage, reaching perfection only allows one to see such a glimmer of hope for the future and lays the foundation. But the 'Swift Shadow Step' you exchanged for, as well as the martial arts techniques you learned before..."

She paused, a hint of helplessness on her face: "I didn't sense any true potential for 'chasing the sun' among them. They seem more like simplified versions or substitutes created by later martial saints based on incomplete ancient methods, or even created by themselves. Once their power reaches a certain standard, they are directly classified as 'Great Sun level'. They are far from the true ancient Great Sun level."

Fang Qingyu listened and remained silent for a moment.

It's not that he can't accept reality.

Jiang Wei's knowledge far surpasses that of ordinary people, and her words are highly credible.

"understood."

Fang Qingyu put away the book "A Glimpse of a ...

Although it may not be a true ancient Ōshin-class weapon, its described burst and teleportation characteristics are still very useful to him at present.

Practice first to improve speed and lay the foundation for understanding the true meaning of body movement. Replace it when you find a better one in the future.

"Let's go to the training ground."

Fang Qingyu said to Jiang Wei.

The two left the Martial Arts Pavilion and returned to the vast and primal training ground of the Dragon Abyss Pavilion.

As soon as I entered, I heard deafening shouts and the explosive sounds of colliding energy.

Chu Kuanglan, his upper body bare and bronze, was carrying a black boulder the size of a small car. He was standing in a horse stance beside a lava ditch, his muscles bulging like cast iron. Sweat that had just seeped out of his pores was immediately vaporized into white smoke by the scorching heat. He was letting out a low roar, clearly practicing some kind of extremely domineering hard skill.

Lu Jiuyuan moved through the dodging training area filled with high-speed moving, sharp barbed alloy walls, his figure like a ghost. The narrow battle sword in his hand brought out streaks of cold light as he accurately blocked, deflected, and even used the reaction force to accelerate his dodge. The friction between the sword light and the barbs sparked dazzling sparks.

Wei Banmeng was practicing her pair of Xuanchi twin swords on the ancient blue stone training ground in the center.

The blade flashed like two intersecting black ribbons, exuding an icy aura. At times, it resembled two dragons emerging from the sea, majestic and powerful; at other times, it was like a coiling serpent, cunning and unpredictable. Wherever the blade passed, the air seemed to freeze into tiny ice crystals.

As Fang Qingyu and Jiang Wei entered, Wei Banmeng sheathed her sword and stood there, her breath deep and resonant.

He raised his hand to wipe away the fine beads of sweat from his forehead, looked over with his cool eyes, and nodded as a greeting.

Chu Kuanglan and Lu Jiuyuan also stopped temporarily and waved in this direction.

"Well? Have you chosen your movement technique?"

Wei Banmeng walked over, her breathing quickly calming down.

"Yes, the Swift Shadow Step." Fang Qingyu replied simply.

Wei Banmeng didn't ask any further questions, seemingly unsurprised by Fang Qingyu's choice.

As if remembering something, she took out a palm-sized leather notebook with no markings on the cover from a specially made tactical pouch at her waist and handed it to Fang Qingyu.

"Here you go." Her voice remained clear and crisp. "These are some examples of the occurrence of 'Source Tides' that I've collected and compiled, along with some simple records of the capture process. Although they are not complete and may not be entirely accurate, they should give you a more intuitive understanding of them."

"Thank you!"

Fang Qingyu's eyes lit up; this information had come at just the right time.

He immediately took the notebook, and instead of rushing to train his new movement technique, he found a flat bluestone at the edge of the training ground, sat down, and began to read it carefully.

Jiang Wei also came over and stood on tiptoe to look.

The handwriting in the notebook is neat, strong, and clearly organized.

Just as Fang Qingyu had guessed, the Origin Tide was indeed similar to a "Strange Fire".

However, it is not a rare and wondrous object of heaven and earth that exists in a fixed location for a long time, like a "strange fire".

They are more like "phenomena" that briefly emerged when the extremely violent natural power of the "Abyss" reached a certain critical point, resulting from the collision and fusion of highly condensed fragments of rules and primordial energy.

Several examples recorded by Wei Banmeng confirm this point:
Example 1: In the southwest of "Abyss", in an area called "Thousand Blade Storm Valley", when dozens of destructive tornadoes that connect the sky and the earth are generated at the same time and collide and tear each other apart, at the core node where the storm energy is most chaotic and violent, a "Void Rift Wind" source tide containing the ultimate meaning of cutting and tearing briefly emerged.

But it only lasted for less than three minutes.

As the storm subsided, the source tides also disappeared without a trace.

Example 2: Deep in the "permafrost plain" in the northern part of the "Abyss", an unprecedented "extreme cold blizzard" swept across the land and sky, and the temperature plummeted to the point that even space seemed to be frozen.

At the heart of the blizzard, an "absolute zero singularity" resembling a miniature black hole appeared, emanating the "eternal chill" essence that freezes everything.

However, when the blizzard stopped, the singularity collapsed.

The capture process is extremely dangerous.

The notes mention that the location where the source tide appears must be the "dead zone" at the core of that extreme celestial phenomenon, where the energy is most violent and the rules are most chaotic!
To approach and capture it, one must not only endure the terrifying tearing force of nature, but also guard against the covetousness of powerful spirits or other participants who are also attracted by the source tide.

The methods of capture are incredibly varied, ranging from forcibly containing the animals in specially made containers to assimilating and pulling them with one's own power, and even temporarily trapping them with arrays. However, without exception, all of these methods are extremely difficult and have a very high failure rate.

Fang Qingyu silently closed the notebook, his face not showing much shock, but rather a knowing "I knew it" attitude.

This is basically consistent with his previous conjecture based on Jiang Wei's metaphor of "different fire".

"Finished reading?" Wei Banmeng's voice came through.

"Hmm." Fang Qingyu handed the notebook back to her. "It's pretty much what I thought: fleeting, born in extreme conditions, capturing danger."

Wei Banmeng took the notebook and put it away, a bitter smile appearing on her usually aloof face: "Indeed. So, finding it is difficult, but capturing it is even more difficult." She paused, then looked at Fang Qingyu, her eyes questioning: "What kind of source energy tide does your Dragon Sparrow need?"

Fang Qingyu did not hide anything: "Thunder. The purest and most violent thunder essence."

Wei Banmeng nodded; this was expected, as the Dragon Sparrow Slash itself possessed a strong lightning attribute. She continued, "My Xuan Chi Twin Blades need 'darkness'."

"Darkness?" Fang Qingyu's gaze sharpened slightly. "Everything about the source tides of 'Darkness'?"

“Yes.” Wei Banmeng affirmed, “Annihilation, Devouring, Shadow, Concealment, as long as the source substance contains the true meaning of the origin of ‘darkness’, it can become the opportunity for the Xuan Chi to transform. This kind of source substance usually appears in the deepest night, the abyss that devours all light, or the core of the rift that distorts light.”

Fang Qingyu nodded thoughtfully.

The darkness, however, is a home-field advantage for him!

The Candle Walker's abilities are perfectly suited to dark environments, greatly enhancing their perception, stealth, and even some of their control abilities.

When the time comes, I will have a natural advantage over others in delving into the core of darkness to capture the source matter.

“Okay.” Fang Qingyu readily agreed. “I will do my best. Please keep an eye on my Thunder.”

“Okay.” Wei Banmeng’s reply was equally concise and forceful, her eyes revealing a hint of trust and expectation.

Fang Qingyu's performance in the Songdu Pit gave her confidence in this.

Having reached a consensus, Fang Qingyu no longer delayed.

His gaze swept across the training ground and finally settled on the high-speed moving target range area, which was specifically used for agility training.

Currently, it is necessary to master "The Step of the Flying Swan" as soon as possible and cultivate "The Swift Cloud Trail" to perfection.

Then merge!

See if you can touch the threshold of the true meaning of body movement.

As for the materials needed for the various hard skills, the funds were in place yesterday after Wei Banmeng helped him dispose of the spoils from the underground training ground.

I've already placed the order, but it hasn't been delivered yet.

Take a deep breath.

Fang Qingyu's figure flickered, instantly turning into a blurry afterimage.

With a chilling aura that occasionally leaked out a trace of dark golden lightning and fire, it shot towards the firing range!

(End of this chapter)