Chapter 542: Doubts of Promotion (Part 2)

The three took the aura-sensing needles Zhuo Feiming had refined and parted ways.

Back in the Geometric Pyramid Realm, while nurturing his Gang Qi, Yu Fei suddenly understood what Zhuo Feiming had meant.

As the combat squad leader of the Shenhan Celestial Pride Class, Yu Wen Baji was a known quantity. Given the old man’s methods, he couldn’t have been unaware of Yu Wen Baji’s capabilities, yet he still placed Feng Hua and the others under his command.

When Yu Fei later defeated Yu Wen Baji, it was only natural that Feng Hua and the others would technically owe him a favor.

He suddenly had a thought. ‘Could it be that the old man was trying to push me to form my own combat team? To build a super-legion in the future?’

He sighed. That had to be it. He was being slow on the uptake. If he hadn’t possessed so many talents, Ye Shuping would have had his life planned out to the last detail.

Yu Fei’s life returned to a state of tranquility. He completed his daily cultivation, and with each passing day, his Gang Qi grew more responsive. This manifested externally as his Sword Qi moved like an extension of his own limbs, requiring almost no conscious control to spontaneously follow his intentions.

Zhuo Feiming was already investigating and gathering intelligence on Sima Hong.

So for a while, Yu Fei and Li Mengyao spent their days and nights together, enjoying their life as a couple.

A little over a month later, he finally achieved Gang Qi Perfection.

Within his Qi Sea, the near-solid Gang Qi transformed into wisps of tangible, crystalline Sword Qi that darted around the Returning Ruins Realm Sword.

Zhanming swam about like a fish in the vast Qi Sea, and a great sense of satisfaction welled up within Yu Fei.

The next step was to begin his advancement to the Grandmaster realm.

Ye Shuping had repeatedly instructed him on the key requirements for this breakthrough, which were also recorded in the All Things Return to Origin Scripture.

Generally, crossing the dragon gate to the Grandmaster realm placed high demands on a Martial Artist’s Inner Qi and soul. There were fewer restrictions on physical strength; in fact, the body would be enhanced by the Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth during the promotion.

This was why Ye Shuping had him master the Great Sun Glaze Body ahead of time—to seize this opportunity to further strengthen his physical form and increase his potential.

Once a Martial Artist achieves Gang Qi Perfection, they meet the basic requirements for advancing to the Grandmaster realm.

Then, they must use a Secret Technique to guide their soul and purify themselves, seeking to attain a state of Unity of Heaven and Man.

The soul and qi merge, drawing upon the Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth to break through to the Grandmaster realm.

In modern martial arts research, the so-called Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth is considered a type of high-level energy naturally produced by a planet. Martial Artists do not absorb it directly; instead, it acts more like a miraculous catalyst.

It is commonly believed that the more Martial Artists who advance to the Grandmaster realm, the purer the Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth becomes. However, this theory has never been scientifically proven.

Wasting no more time, Yu Fei told Li Mengyao not to disturb him and went to the fifth-floor training hall, intending to attempt the soul purification process.

This was a preliminary step for the advancement, one that could be started and stopped at will.

Its purpose was to detect any flaws in his mental state, serving as a self-diagnostic before attempting to cross the dragon gate to the Grandmaster realm.

Soon, Yu Fei activated the Secret Technique. His mind grew still, and he appeared to have fallen into a deep slumber. Yet, in the depths of his spiritual world, his past experiences began to manifest one by one, like scenes in a revolving lantern.

Unlike ordinary Martial Artists, his situation was more complicated. These memories also included everything from his past life.

In this life, he had no real flaws in his mental state. Ever since he’d gotten his ‘cheat,’ life had been incredibly smooth. Even in the sixteen years before that, he had never truly suffered.

The problem lay with his past life. In comparison, it was full of nothing but flaws.

As if in a dream, he relived all the miserable events of his past life.

When he opened his eyes again, his expression was grim, but he recovered his usual composure in an instant.

His past life still affected him, but he had ways of dealing with it.

Both the self-awakening of his Spiritual Wisdom talent and the help from Ye Shuping’s Long Lake Forgetfulness Tea had, to a certain extent, weakened the influence of his past life. His mindset had even grown younger as a result.

In addition, the unique art, the Void Clearing Mirror, was also remarkably effective for controlling one’s mental state.

‘Oh, right,’ he remembered, ‘my Spiritual Wisdom has already upgraded to the gold-tier Immortal Spirit.’

And so, over the following days, he performed the soul purification again and again. He would repeatedly detach his consciousness to re-examine those experiences, analyze himself, and ultimately, find peace with it all.

After all, his soul had transmigrated after his body died in his previous life. He had been all alone, with no attachments and not even any close friends to speak of. Naturally, there was nothing for him to miss.

After two weeks, Yu Fei finally completed his soul purification. He was now ready to draw upon the Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth and cross the dragon gate at any moment.

At this point, it is necessary to explain the difference between a Dharma Idol Grandmaster and a Domain Grandmaster.

A Dharma Idol Grandmaster directs over 70% of the Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth into their body for further enhancement. The distribution ratio is 1:2:7, meaning one part for the soul, two parts for Gang Qi, and seven parts for the body.

A Domain Grandmaster, however, must allocate the Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth in a 5:4:1 ratio among their soul, Gang Qi, and body, respectively.

In recent years, Yuqing University has even developed an extreme distribution method with an 8:1:1 ratio. This method primarily strengthens the soul and is said to be more conducive to breaking through to the Martial Saint realm, though it results in relatively weaker combat strength.

Ye Shuping told Yu Fei that a Martial Artist had once tried to divide the energy equally among the three components. Logically, balancing one’s essence, qi, and spirit should have been ideal, but the result was poor; the Martial Artist failed their breakthrough to the Grandmaster realm.

After years of research, Yuqing University determined that the 5:4:1 ratio was the most widely accepted. It offered the highest success rate and greatest utility, defining the path of the modern Domain Grandmaster.

Yu Fei deliberately chose an auspicious day. He burned incense, bathed, and adjusted his condition to its absolute peak, preparing to make his assault on the dragon gate to the Grandmaster realm.

Theoretically, this step should pose no difficulty for him. Guided by the Secret Technique, Yu Fei entered the state of Unity of Heaven and Man, his soul becoming thoughtless, pure, and transparent.

Before long, his consciousness seemed to ascend, and he faintly perceived the rhythm of the great earth beneath him.

‘No, that’s the rhythm of the planet!’

As Yu Fei fell into thought, he felt the planet brimming with endless life. He continuously adjusted the frequency of his soul, and soon, he sensed an emerald-green current of energy.

‘This is the Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth.’

Theoretically, the amount of Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth a person could draw upon varied depending on the foundation of their soul. An ordinary Martial Artist could only obtain a single wisp, whereas a prodigy could draw a full stream.

A top-tier genius, like his Senior Sister, could draw an amount of Origin Qi comparable to a creek.

This was the difference in their fundamental foundations.

But Yu Fei’s soul had long since opened a sea of consciousness. His foundation far surpassed that of any ordinary person, making him arguably the most exceptional individual this world had ever seen.

Thus, in just a few moments, an amount of emerald-green Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth comparable to a great river had gathered around his soul.

It danced about like a roaming dragon, as if expressing its delight.

As more and more of the Origin Qi gathered, the Geometric Pyramid Realm where Yu Fei was located took on a peculiar quality, and the very air grew heavy.

Not far from the Geometric Pyramid Realm, Ye Shuping and Tang Lihui sat facing each other.

“This kid… The martial foundation Yu Fei has built is simply unprecedented!”

The Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth is omnipresent yet difficult to perceive. It only manifests at the critical moment a Martial Artist advances to the Grandmaster realm. It is believed to be a special substance produced from the combination of a planet’s magnetic field and life energy, capable of accelerating the speed of evolution by countless times in a short period.

Through this intense reaction, a Martial Artist’s existence undergoes an unprecedented ascension.

Therefore, the more Origin Qi a Martial Artist attracts, the more thorough their evolution, and the greater their resulting strength.

Tang Lihui merely watched with delight, offering no comment. He knew how much his teacher valued Yu Fei and was happy to see things come to fruition.

From the perspective of Yu Fei’s soul, the immeasurable Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth had become a veritable emerald ocean.

‘Have I reached the limit?’

‘Then let’s begin!’

He planned to distribute the Origin Qi according to the traditional 5:4:1 ratio for advancing to a Domain Grandmaster.

However, no Martial Artist had ever attempted this while cultivating the All Things Return to Origin Scripture. Yu Fei had no idea what kind of domain abilities he would gain by achieving the Grandmaster realm this way.

Just as the Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth was about to enter his body, a sharp pain suddenly shot through him, forcing Yu Fei to halt his actions!

‘What’s going on?’

He was at a complete loss. It seemed his Dongyou talent’s damage premonition had been triggered.

Yu Fei silently guided a small stream of the Origin Qi. With a mental command, he was about to draw it into his body, but the familiar, sharp pain returned, though it was less intense this time.

‘Could it be? Is this Origin Qi of Heaven and Earth… poisonous?’