Chapter 494 - 490: Late Stage of Third Grade

Chapter 494: Chapter 490: Late Stage of Third Grade

「Ten days later.」

Morning light filtered through the cracks in the window lattice, casting long, slender shadows on the green brick floor.

Blue smoke curled up from the Sandalwood Incense Burner, its faint fragrance filling the Quiet Chamber and mingling with the cool morning air.

’Celestial Essence Pill.’

Fang Han sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion. He tipped a Celestial Essence Pill from a Jade Bottle and placed it in his mouth.

The Elixir melted the moment it entered his mouth. A gentle yet immense Medicinal Power dissolved in his abdomen and surged toward his limbs and bones.

He closed his eyes and slowly began to circulate the Cyan Profound Technique.

Cyan-gold Inner Qi coursed through his meridians, capturing, absorbing, and refining the Celestial Essence Pill’s Medicinal Power strand by strand. It converted the power into his own Inner Qi, which then flowed back into his meridians before pouring into the Shenmai Acupoint.

For the past ten days, he had been cultivating diligently without a single day of rest.

The Medicinal Power of the Celestial Essence Pill far surpassed that of the Earth Spirit Pill. Combined with his 256x Root Bone Talent Amplification, the growth of his Inner Qi could be described as advancing a thousand miles in a single day.

The Inner Qi within his Shenmai Acupoint grew increasingly abundant, nearing the critical point of Perfection.

Time passed quietly in the silence.

BUZZ—

Fang Han’s mind sank into his body, and he could clearly "see" the misty, cyan-gold Inner Qi within his Shenmai Acupoint.

At this moment, the acupoint was filled to the brim with Inner Qi, without a single gap remaining.

Suddenly, a faint tremor that only he could perceive emanated from within the Shenmai Acupoint.

The overflowing Inner Qi, like water in a full pond, spontaneously began to flow slowly toward the next acupoint—the Jingming Acupoint.

However, the instant the Inner Qi touched the Jingming Acupoint, an invisible yet resilient barrier suddenly appeared.

The barrier was like a transparent wall, blocking the Inner Qi.

’I’ve hit the bottleneck to the Late Stage of Third Grade!’

Fang Han’s expression was calm, his heart untroubled.

For an ordinary Third Grade Martial Artist, this Minor Realm bottleneck might take months or even longer of arduous cultivation to break through.

Although it was a minor bottleneck, it was a minor bottleneck within the Upper Three Grades. In terms of difficulty, breaking through it was no easier than breaking through a major bottleneck in the Middle Three Grades.

But for him, with the bottleneck weakened by his 256x Root Bone Talent Amplification, it was nothing to speak of.

With a thought, the cyan-gold Inner Qi in his body began to compress and condense, forming sharp "drills." Following the breakthrough method of the Cyan Profound Technique, it fiercely charged the barrier outside the Jingming Acupoint.

BOOM—

The barrier visibly trembled on the very first impact.

Fang Han remained calm and patient, guiding his Inner Qi to strike again and again.

Each impact added a few more cracks to the barrier, leaving it on the verge of collapse.

The remaining Medicinal Power of the Celestial Essence Pill was rapidly consumed in the assault, transforming into wave after wave of immense Inner Qi.

A short while later, Fang Han gathered all the Inner Qi in his body and launched a final assault.

CRACK—

A crisp shattering sound, originating from the very source of his life, echoed throughout his perception.

The invisible barrier before the Jingming Acupoint shattered on cue.

The long-accumulated, immense Inner Qi surged joyfully into the newly opened Jingming Acupoint like a flood bursting through a dam.

BOOM!

In that instant, the aura around Fang Han erupted like a volcano, swelling uncontrollably.

Its intensity far surpassed that of the Middle Stage of Third Grade. It stirred an invisible wave of air in the Quiet Chamber, scattering the curling blue smoke from the Sandalwood Incense Burner.

Including the Jingming Acupoint, the twenty-one now-connected acupoints formed a more complex and efficient system for circulating Inner Qi.

The speed and volume of the flowing Inner Qi increased sharply. Its color deepened from cyan-gold to a richer hue, and its texture became as viscous as mercury. As it circulated, it brought with it a sense of power far greater than before.

A wondrous sensation of complete transformation, of a leap in his very level of existence, washed over him.

’Late Stage of Third Grade, done.’

Fang Han slowly opened his eyes. A glint of cyan-gold light swirled within them before gradually receding.

He gently clenched his fist, his knuckles letting out a series of crisp pops. A faint smile touched his lips as he felt the increasingly vast and powerful Inner Qi within him.

The purity of his Inner Qi had risen another level compared to when he was in the Middle Stage of Third Grade.

If the Inner Qi of the Middle Stage of Third Grade was molten iron, then his current Inner Qi was like molten silver. The same amount now possessed a power that was simply incomparable.

’The ability of the newly opened Divine Treasure is...’

Fang Han didn’t get up immediately. Instead, he submerged his consciousness into the newly opened Jingming Acupoint.

With the opening of this acupoint, a brand-new Divine Treasure had been unlocked.

With a flicker of his thoughts, he tried to use this Divine Treasure.

The next instant—

An unprecedented sense of clarity emerged from the depths of his eyes.

Everything in the Quiet Chamber became visible down to the finest detail.

The cloud patterns on the Sandalwood Incense Burner as fine as strands of hair, the barely perceptible dust particles in the cracks of the green brick floor, the minute fissures left by time in the wood grain of the window lattice—

Everything was so clear it was as if it had been magnified several times, appearing in his vision in distinct layers.

He raised his head, his gaze passing through the gaps in the window lattice to look at the courtyard outside.

He could clearly see every leaf in the bamboo grove—the direction of its veins, the serrations on its edges, and even the tiny dewdrops clinging to its surface.

A small bird flew past the courtyard wall. The frequency of its wing beats, the layered colors of its feathers, and even an extremely fine crack on its beak could not escape his eyes.

"Exceptional Eye Power."

Fang Han murmured to himself, a hint of satisfaction in his eyes.

This was the newly opened Divine Treasure—it granted him superhuman vision.

Even without having cultivated any visual Tracking Secret Techniques, he could now rely on his eyes alone to detect subtle, hard-to-find traces to a certain extent.

Things like the depth of footprints, the bend of a blade of grass, or signs of disturbed soil, would allow him to track a target.

Furthermore, the power of this Divine Treasure would grow stronger as his Cultivation increased.

According to what he had read in the Sect’s archives, if he were to one day step into the First Grade Realm, this power of minute observation would be no weaker than that of a Martial Artist skilled in a Top Grade visual Secret Technique.

And if he also cultivated a visual Tracking Secret Technique, his tracking ability would be even more powerful.

Back when he killed You Xin, his own Body Technique was superb, to the point of being traceless upon landing.

But he was still tracked and found by Yin Wugou, because not only was Yin Wugou a Second Grade Martial Artist, but he had also cultivated a visual Tracking Secret Technique.

With both factors combined, even he, with his impressive Body Technique at the time, couldn’t escape Yin Wugou’s tracking.

’I owe my rapid breakthrough to the Late Stage of Third Grade to the Celestial Essence Pills!’

Fang Han’s ability to break through to the Late Stage of Third Grade so quickly was not just due to his 256x Root Bone Talent Amplification; the Celestial Essence Pills also played an indispensable role.

The Medicinal Power of this Elixir from the Ancient Ruins was far purer than that of the Earth Spirit Pill, allowing him to completely fill his Shenmai Acupoint in just ten days.

’Unfortunately—’

Fang Han’s thoughts paused for a moment.

The formula for the Celestial Essence Pill had long been lost. The ones that existed today were all excavated from various Ancient Ruins. Each one used was one less, making them a non-renewable resource in a sense.

He had seized a total of ten bottles from the dead disciples of the Red Flame Sect and Thunderlight Pavilion. After accounting for what he had already consumed for cultivation, he now had fewer than eight bottles left.

’I’ll have to use them sparingly.’

Fang Han shook his head, temporarily pushing these thoughts aside.

He walked out of the Quiet Chamber and into the backyard Cultivation Field, which had been expanded and reinforced to be the size of a quarter of a soccer field.

His right hand rested on the hilt of his sword.

Having broken through to the Late Stage of Third Grade, his Inner Qi was purer, and his strength had naturally risen with it.

He needed to personally experience just what level he had now reached.

CLANG—

The Cloud Splitting Sword left its sheath, its dark-cyan blade shimmering with a restrained light.

Fang Han didn’t execute any Sword Techniques; he simply slashed out with his sword.

The cyan-gold Inner Qi on the blade condensed as if it were solid.

HISS—

A sword mark nearly a foot deep appeared on the Spirit Iron Block used for testing at the side of the Cultivation Field.

The edges of the mark were as smooth as a mirror, as if they had been repeatedly polished by an invisible blade.

’Impressive power!’

A hint of satisfaction flashed in Fang Han’s eyes.

He had only used about ten percent of his strength for that strike, yet it still produced such a result.

If he used his full strength, this Spirit Iron Block would probably be sliced in two.

Compared to when he was in the Middle Stage of Third Grade, his Attack Power had increased several times over.

’My current strength...’

Fang Han sheathed his sword and silently estimated in his mind.

If he went all out using his Minor Achievement Realm Sky-Splitting Sword Technique and Minor Achievement Realm Wind God Step, he would likely have few rivals among Second Grade Martial Artists.

’As for First Grade Martial Artists—’

Fang Han pondered for a moment, then shook his head slightly.

Although First Grade and Second Grade were only one rank apart, that single rank was a natural chasm within the Upper Three Grades.

The quality of a First Grade Martial Artist’s Inner Qi, their Spiritual Perception, and their control over their own power were all far beyond what a Second Grade Martial Artist could compare to.

His current strength might allow him to trade blows with a First Grade Martial Artist to some extent, no longer completely helpless.

But his chances of victory were still slim.

’However, the gap isn’t that large anymore.’

Fang Han murmured to himself, no trace of dejection in his eyes.

Going from being completely helpless to being able to barely hold his own was already a huge improvement.

’If my Sky-Splitting Sword Technique could advance further and break through to the Mastery Realm...’

Fang Han’s breathing became slightly deeper and longer.

With Mental Swordsmanship, each advancement in Realm increased its power by more than tenfold.

If his Sky-Splitting Sword Technique reached Mastery and his Sword Intent became more condensed, he was confident that his strength would be truly comparable to a First Grade Martial Artist.

With that kind of strength, he could then consider heading to Wangxi County to search for the treasure on the map.

"Wangxi County."

Fang Han’s gaze drifted out the window, as if trying to pierce through the layers of mountains and see that distant place, five counties away from Qingyang County.

The red dot marking the spot on the Treasure Map was still clearly etched in his mind.

Being connected to Ancient Ruins, the value of that treasure was bound to be astonishing.

’But before that, there is still one matter to attend to.’

Fang Han retracted his gaze and frowned slightly.

Demons were running rampant in Qingyang County on a scale not seen in over a hundred years.

And behind this disturbance, it was highly likely that the Grandmaster Level Demon that escaped from the Cloud Mist Mountain Range was pulling the strings.

The Sect needed his Tracking Secret Technique, and he couldn’t just leave at a time like this.

’I wonder if they’ve found any recent traces of that Grandmaster Level Demon yet.’

Fang Han muttered to himself.

With his Thousand-Mile Soul Lock at the Realm of Perfection, his tracking ability was likely second to none in all of Qingyang County.

As long as he could find recent traces left by the Demon, he was highly confident he could hunt it down in the vast wilderness.

Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps came from outside the courtyard gate.

"Senior Brother."

Qiu Lan’s voice, tinged with seriousness, sounded from outside the Quiet Chamber door.

"A disciple from the Sect Leader’s Hall requests an audience. He says the Sect Leader summons you to the Sect Leader’s Hall immediately."

Fang Han’s brows twitched slightly.

A summons from the Sect Leader, and an "immediate" one at that—could it be that there was progress in the search for the Grandmaster Level Demon?

He straightened his robes and pushed the door open.