I became a Sword Emperor in the Martial Arts World

Chapter 158 Oxygen is "Toxic"

Seeing this, Ye Qingzhou said to Huang Jinlong with a troubled expression, "How about this, if you introduce ten customers to me, I will forge a top-quality sword for you for free."

"really!"

Golden Dragon immediately perked up.

Ye Qingzhou sighed, "It's only because I'm kind-hearted and can't bear to see anyone suffer that I let you take such a good deal."

"..."

Huang Jinlong was speechless. He still remembered the time when Ye Qingzhou extorted money from him and Liu Dingjian in Yanling Cave!

The man in front of me has a heart as black as an inkwell; how could he be kind?

But free stuff always tastes better!

"Brother Long, let's get this straight: you'll have to provide your own materials. I can only waive the labor fee; you can't expect me to lose money, can you?"

"OK!"

Huang Jinlong gritted his teeth and agreed, feeling that he wouldn't lose out.

Little did he know that while he might not lose out in this deal, Ye Qingzhou would always make a huge profit.

Because once the "Thousand Hammers and Hundred Refinements" technique is mastered to perfection, the material cost for forging a top-grade sword is not much higher than that for a rare sword, while the Golden Dragon has to pay five times the amount of materials for the former.

The extra materials are all free money!

If the deal goes smoothly, Ye Qingzhou will probably be laughing in his dreams. After all, behind the Golden Dragon is Kang Jinlong, who is the master of a cave, a star lord, and a mythical life form. His family must be very wealthy.

It all depends on how many gold coins the Golden Dragon can get from Old Deng.

Ye Qingzhou was very much looking forward to it.

In the end, both sides felt they had gotten a great deal, and the ending was a happy one for everyone.

"Ye Qingzhou, when will you become a Grandmaster?"

"Go back and wait for my notification. I will let you know when I have mastered the 'Thousand Hammers and Hundred Refinements' technique to perfection and am confident that I can forge a top-quality weapon."

"Okay, remember to let me know."

"Don't worry, Brother Long. Even if we don't consider your ancestor Kang Jinlong, based on our friendship, you are still my dearest friend and family."

After Ye Qingzhou's persuasive words, Huang Jinlong finally left satisfied, his mouth agape in a wide grin.

Upon seeing this, Ye Qingzhou sighed, "Indeed, in the adult world, even if you're secretly happy about something, you have to put on a troubled expression. Otherwise, how can you expect the other party to be grateful?"

After Huang Jinlong left, Ye Qingzhou once again immersed himself in cultivation.

Recently, besides "Thousand Hammers and Hundred Refinements", Ye Qingzhou has also been studying the "Fish-Dragon Transformation" technique. Although it has various aftereffects of physical mutation, "Fish-Dragon Transformation" is still the strongest technique Ye Qingzhou has ever encountered in terms of exploring life potential.

none of them!

In the quiet room, Ye Qingzhou held his breath and focused his mind.

Now he has become accustomed to using meditation instead of sleep, and with the help of the "Twenty-Four Divine Preservation Methods" to cut off the distractions in his body, his organs, especially his brain, can get a full rest and recuperation.

"I have mastered the Dragon Breath Technique, and my body no longer needs to breathe externally. This is a sign that my martial arts true energy has completely transformed from acquired to innate. The next step is to cultivate the Immaculate Body, so that my mind and body can be completely free of impurities and that my energy can flow freely."

According to the internal energy cultivation method recorded in "Fish-Dragon Transformation", the scaled creatures can continuously purify and refine their acquired internal energy through the Dragon Breath Secret Technique, eventually transforming it into innate internal energy.

Then, through innate internal energy, the vital energy is guided to cleanse and refine the whole body, strengthen tendons and bones, and elevate life.

The ultimate goal is to transform oneself from a "mortal body" into a "perfect life".

For example, the True Dragon Body that Bai Jiaofengqi painstakingly created is a special body that conforms to the definition of "perfect life" and has extremely powerful abilities.

Ye Qingzhou immersed himself in cultivation, constantly trying to understand the differences between "Six Forms of Military Competition" and "Fish-Dragon Transformation" in terms of internal energy secret techniques.

Internal energy is the foundation of martial arts.

Just as breathing is the foundation of life.

An ordinary person might survive for six days without drinking water, but if an ordinary person doesn't breathe, six minutes will cause irreversible brain damage, or even brain death.

This shows that air is of much higher priority than water for life.

Breathing is the process of gas exchange between a living organism and its external environment.

The human breathing process involves three interconnected steps.

First, through external respiration via the lungs.

Second, the transport of gases in the blood.

Third, internal respiration, which involves gas exchange and oxidative metabolism between cells and blood.

The internal breathing technique utilizes the characteristics of internal respiration, allowing vital energy to replace oxygen and participate in the metabolism of cells and blood, thereby gaining powerful strength.

As for innate internal breathing, it completely "replaces" the external breathing mode through the lungs, allowing practitioners to no longer rely on oxygen, a low-efficiency "ordinary breath," but instead transform the body's functional mode into a more efficient and powerful "internal breath" driven by vital energy.

Vital energy is "toxic," but oxygen is also "toxic."

Just as iron rusts due to oxidation, the human body also rusts due to oxidation, causing it to age prematurely.

With each breath, the oxidative reaction in cells produces free radicals, which damage the body's genetic code, interfere with energy production, and ultimately accelerate aging.

This is why martial artists who reach the professional level live longer than ordinary people, and those at the master and grandmaster levels can even live to the theoretical lifespan limit of 175 years.

As for martial saints, due to the multiple transformations of their lives, they are able to break through this limit and thus gain a long lifespan.

Throughout Earth's history, there has never been a record of a Martial Saint dying of natural aging; they were almost always killed by others or ascended to immortality on their own.

All of this is because martial artists, starting from the professional level, constantly replace their original external breathing with martial arts true qi. Martial arts masters, on the other hand, completely "sever mortal breath," opening the bridge between heaven and earth, and can "penetrate heaven and earth with qi," directly drawing energy from the surrounding natural environment to supply themselves, so that their cells do not age faster due to oxidation.

The next morning, when Ye Qingzhou opened her eyes again, she was no longer breathing.

Now, he no longer needs to breathe air; his body's energy supply relies entirely on the four innate energies within him.

Ye Qingzhou's body already possesses the five innate elements of metal, wood, water, and fire, but lacks the innate element of earth.

Once Huang Liwen has completed his cultivation and awakened the inherited memories within his body, Ye Qingzhou will be able to truly master the Five Emperors Dragon Sword Technique. At that time, he can attempt the Five Elements Rotation and the Five Qi Convergence, and launch an attack on the realm of perfect life.

Clenching his fist, Ye Qingzhou felt the surging martial arts true energy within his body and once again experienced the difference between true energy and internal breath.

"The way internal energy circulates is like a steam engine boiling water. To start a steam engine, you first need to burn coal to boil the water, and then use the rising steam to drive the machine. Internal energy works the same way. Martial artists need to first use internal energy to trigger the resonance of vital energy, thereby activating martial arts techniques."

Ye Qingzhou fell into deep thought. The first gear he developed was actually an upgrade of the steam engine to an internal combustion engine, and the driving method of "boiling water" was changed to a more powerful "internal combustion burst" mode.

But now that Ye Qingzhou has advanced to the professional level, his internal energy has transformed into martial arts true qi, and the "internal combustion burst" mode is a bit unable to keep up with his progress.

"The mechanism of martial arts true qi is similar to that of electric power. It is much more efficient than 'boiling water' and 'internal combustion explosion'. However, the output power is obviously insufficient. If I want to obtain greater power, I must start developing an upgraded version of the second gear."

Ye Qingzhou began to organize his thoughts.

As soon as he stepped out of the room, Yingyue, who was wearing pajamas, lit up and came over, rubbing and licking him, clinging to Ye Qingzhou and refusing to let go: "My lord, you smell so good."

"Let go right now, I'm going to be late for school!"

"No!"

Yingyue continued to rub her face against Ye Qingzhou's, then sniffed all over Ye Qingzhou's body with her delicate nose, her expression one of utter ecstasy.

In reality, Ye Qingzhou's immaculate body has no "odor," and Yingyue's description of "fragrant" is actually a mental illusion.

The body of the Immaculate One is pure and flawless, so the life aura it emits has a fatal attraction to other living beings around it.

With great difficulty, Ye Qingzhou managed to break free from Yingyue's broad embrace.

Ye Qingzhou had just stepped out of his house and was about to walk to school when he saw Liang Yawen greeting him: "Good morning, Ye Qingzhou."

Today, she wore a fitted wool sweater, which was both warm and showed off her figure, making her extremely pleasing to the eye.

Ye Qingzhou nodded to her, her tone indifferent: "Yes, hello."

However, Liang Yawen didn't mind at all. On the contrary, she became even more enthusiastic towards Ye Qingzhou and even took the initiative to invite Ye Qingzhou to get in the car and go to school together.

Ye Qingzhou did not refuse.

After getting in the car, Liang Ya-wen asked curiously, "Where's your big black snake? I haven't seen it lately."

"What, do you want to see him?"

"No, no!"

Liang Ya-wen was so frightened that she turned pale and quickly waved her hand in refusal.

For a delicate girl like her, snakes were her biggest fear. She secretly breathed a sigh of relief, thinking Ye Qingzhou had finally gotten rid of the dangerous Tyrant Black Serpent, and her courage grew: "Ye Qingzhou, can I join your tutoring class too?"

Want to join Zhouzhou's tutoring class?

Ye Qingzhou smiled and said, "No problem, as long as you pay, I'll take whatever comes my way."

Capitalists are even willing to sell the noose that hangs them, all for the sake of money.

Ye Qingzhou was willing to teach martial arts to his father's killer for money, as long as the other party was willing to pay more.

That's how confident a strong person is.

Moreover, Liang Ya-wen is just an ordinary neighbor, and there is no conflict of interest between them. It is perfectly acceptable for Liang Ya-wen to teach her martial arts, as long as the money is sufficient.

"Huh? It costs money..."

Upon hearing that it wasn't free, Liang Ya-wen felt slightly disappointed.

She thought that with her beauty, Ye Qingzhou would be completely obedient to her and grant her every wish.

Back when she was in Shanghai, she asked those martial arts geniuses to teach her, and none of them ever asked her for money!

However, considering Ye Qingzhou's current status and fame, Liang Yawen suddenly felt it made sense. After all, her father had recently tried countless times to establish a relationship with the bigwigs of the Linjiang Chamber of Commerce, only to be turned away each time.

Her father tried to curry favor with powerful figures everywhere, but he never even got the chance to pay them a bribe!

In comparison, all I need to do now is spend a little money to get close to a future big shot like Ye Qingzhou. It's totally worth it no matter how you look at it!

Finally, Liang Ya-wen successfully paid the fee to become a member of Zhouzhou's tutoring class.

Back at school, the classroom of Grade 11 (7) was unusually lively today.

New Year's Day is just a few days away, and everyone is discussing the arrangements for the New Year's Eve party.

"Hey, did you guys hear? It seems the Ice Fairy is going to perform on stage!"

"Just thinking about it is so exciting!"

Xu Yuebing remains as popular as ever at Linjiang No.1 High School. Any news about her can keep the boys talking for a long time.

As soon as Ye Qingzhou sat down, Xiao Yuanyuan, the arts and culture representative of Class 7, walked gracefully up to him with a form in hand and said softly, "Ye Qingzhou, would you like to perform a program on stage at the New Year's Eve party?"

Ye Qingzhou, quite disloyally, pushed Huang Liwen forward to take the blame: "Brother Wen is much more talented than me. He should go on stage and perform. I guarantee he'll blow the audience away."

Huang Liwen, who was engrossed in copying homework, didn't say anything, but simply gave Ye Qingzhou the middle finger as a gesture of friendliness.

Seeing this, Xiao Yuanyuan immediately clung to Ye Qingzhou's arm and began to plead, "Please help me out, okay? You're the most impressive person in our class. What if we get outshone by the other classes if you don't go on stage and show off your skills?"

Being rubbed against by Da Yuanyuan like this wasn't a solution. Ye Qingzhou's sword heart could already sense the growing malice emanating from the boys around him.

If their level of malice is too high and triggers the counter-attack mechanism of the Heart Sword Secret Technique "Striking Before Thinking," then things could get very difficult to handle.

Ye Qingzhou felt exhausted. Without me, this class would have to break up.

In the end, he agreed to Xiao Yuanyuan's request.

During the last two PE classes in the morning, Ye Qingzhou came across a shocking news story on his phone: Dong Wang, one of the two candidates for emperor of the Western Kingdom, had been assassinated again.

The perpetrator is an unemployed man who possesses a powerful magical artifact. It is said that he has close ties with the Donkey Sect, one of the two major sects in the West, while Dong Wang is the current sect leader of the Elephant Sect.

The struggle between the two super sects is becoming increasingly fierce.

"The Western Kingdom is getting more and more chaotic. The conflict between the Donkey and Elephant factions has even reached the point where they are almost at the point of fighting each other."

Ye Qingzhou shook his head and sighed. Over the years, the national strength of the Eastern Pole Kingdom has been rising steadily, while the national fortune of the Western Pole Kingdom has been declining, which is somewhat reminiscent of the law of conservation of luck.

For every lucky person, there's someone else who's unlucky.

Huang Liwen leaned over and glanced at Ye Qingzhou's phone screen, surprised, "You're also concerned about the Western Expedition?"

"Well, what was originally a contest between the King of Knowledge and the King of Sleep has now turned into a contest between the King of Knowledge and the King of Ha. I wonder who will win in the end."

Ye Qingzhou was concerned about the election mainly because the imperial electors of the Western Extremity Kingdom practiced a very special cultivation method.

Many martial artists there are very fond of following religious paths, and their mastery of mental power is unparalleled. They also place great importance on collecting the power of faith.

For example, the election in the Western Kingdom was less a matter of "election" and more a matter of "fighting" in the real battle.

The "Emperor's Electors" who participate in the election in the Western Kingdom will gain popular support based on their own approval ratings, thus quickly becoming powerful figures, which is somewhat similar to the idea of ​​"human beings carrying the Dao".

Compared to the martial artists in the Eastern Kingdom who need to train hard on their own, the level of these "selected" masters on the Capitol Hill in the Western Kingdom is much easier. As long as they give speeches everywhere and engage in televised debates and verbal sparring with their opponents, their strength can improve rapidly, at a speed that is practically like riding a rocket.

However, power that is easily gained is also easily lost. Once the support of the people is lost, one will immediately lose all cultivation and be reduced to one's original form at the speed of light.

Moreover, the period before officially ascending the throne is the most vulnerable time for the chosen prince, who is easily assassinated.

Even ascending to the throne and becoming emperor is not absolutely safe.

After all, the strongest force in the Western Kingdom has never been the Donkey and Elephant sects that are on the surface, but the Crimson Temple clan, which is known as the "Chosen Ones of the Blood God".

However, "Sanctuary" is what they call themselves; others call them "Shura".

In the Western Kingdom, you can insult the emperor of a country and get away with it, but if you dare to say a single bad word about the "saints" of the Crimson Sanctuary, then be prepared to be shot eight times in the back and forced to commit suicide.

"The 'election' in the Western Kingdom should be called Mind-Based Martial Arts, right? It seems that the mental martial arts there are quite special, and their popularity is much higher than that in the Eastern Kingdom."

Ye Qingzhou pondered in his heart: "But the Thought Energy Martial Arts must have great hidden dangers. In the history of Dongji Kingdom, there were similar so-called Emperor's Martial Arts that could bear the hearts of all people and control the power of thought energy to become peerless masters. But now they have all abandoned and do not use it, which shows that the high-level leaders of Dongji Kingdom obviously know that the Thought Energy Martial Arts has huge flaws."

After a moment's thought, Ye Qingzhou realized where the problem lay: "It's the Internet!"

He suddenly realized: "In the ancient Eastern Kingdom, the government controlled the propaganda channels, so they could use a hereditary system to cultivate exclusive imperial martial arts and suppress rebellious subjects. But now, the emergence of the Internet has disrupted the original propaganda model, making it very easy for 'thought-based martial arts' to spread and get out of control."

This is actually easy to understand. In ancient times, it was extremely difficult for someone to promote themselves and gain public recognition; most people simply couldn't do it.

However, in today's society, the widespread use of the internet has led to all sorts of strange and unscrupulous people being able to promote themselves and gain support through the internet.

Unfortunately, there are many clueless fools who are most easily deceived and incited to act rashly in a moment of passion.

If exploited by those with ulterior motives, the mental energy within these fools could be transformed by ambitious individuals into martial arts cultivation, allowing them to rise to power overnight.

In particular, the Western Pole Kingdom, an external enemy, loves to wage cognitive warfare in an attempt to disrupt the stability and harmony of the Eastern Pole Kingdom. Therefore, knowledge related to the power of thought is strictly controlled in the Eastern Pole Kingdom.

Ultimately, it's all about protecting ordinary people.

"It seems that the power of thought is even more powerful than I imagined."

Ye Qingzhou fell into deep thought, a vague premonition in his heart that the key to breaking through to the second gear might lie in this power of thought.

(End of this chapter)