Chapter 32: Chapter 29: Every Member of the Li Family is Outstanding
The martial arts within the building were complex and categorized, but perhaps due to the Great Yin Channel being too obscure, Li Hao searched for several hours and failed to find any related records in any cultivation technique.
In contrast, he acquired two more low-grade Body Refinement Skills, which gave his body a slight boost once again.
That evening, Li Muxiu returned, stepping through the air, with a somewhat weary look on his face.
Seeing Li Hao holding the Dragon River Divine Meridian cultivation method, Li Muxiu shook his head with a smile and said, “What, you’re thinking of opening your channels already? Have you stepped into the Zhou Tian Realm, or are you just being overly ambitious?”
“I just stepped in,” Li Hao said.
Li Muxiu was taken aback and couldn’t help asking, “You’ve entered the gateway to the Hundred Jiao Body?”
“Mhm.”
Li Hao nodded. Great Accomplishment could be considered as entering the gateway, right?
“Come, show me what you’ve learned.”
Li Muxiu didn’t waste any more words; he simply asked Li Hao to demonstrate. He would know the true extent of it at a glance.
Li Hao didn’t hold back either, he freely began to perform the techniques.
Although his exposure to these techniques hadn’t been for long, his grandfather gave off a very open and straightforward feeling. If his grandfather had any thought of harming him, Li Hao wouldn’t even be able to defend himself.
Besides, it was just the Great Accomplishment of the Hundred Jiao Body; surely that didn’t count as anything too significant, did it?
As he swung his fists, his Qi Force surged tumultuously. In an instant, an aura akin to a Jiao Dragon emerging from the sea emanated from Li Hao’s body.
Li Muxiu watched with a focused gaze, which soon turned into a stunned expression.
Li Muxiu looked at Li Hao in astonishment. If it were merely the gateway to the Hundred Jiao Body, it wouldn’t be anything special – at most, a rather exceptional talent. The Li Family wasn’t short on talents; you could throw a stone and either hit a servant or a talent.
But from the gateway to minor accomplishment, then to Great Accomplishment, that’s the Great Accomplishment level of the Hundred Jiao Body!
Entered the gateway in one day and reached Great Accomplishment in one day?!
Good heavens, such a cultivation talent for Body Refinement was certainly not inferior to little nine’s talents for cultivation, was it?
Li Muxiu couldn’t help but size up Li Hao. Was this child’s talent for Body Refinement really that exceptional? However, it was a pity that it was only Body Refinement talent.
With this thought, Li Muxiu couldn’t help but heave a deep sigh in his heart.
Although he didn’t like pursuing fame and fortune, being able to cultivate was absolutely a good thing for anyone.
After Li Hao finished demonstrating, he saw his grandfather lost in thought, and with innocent eyes, he took the opportunity to ask, “Grandfather, on another Primordial Cultivation Skill I saw the words ‘Mystic Vein.’ What is this Mystic Vein?”
“You looked at that secret text as well? You didn’t start cultivating it, did you?”
Li Muxiu regained his senses, his brows furrowed suddenly, and his expression became serious.
He stared at Li Hao’s innocent little face and realized he might be overthinking it. This kid was too young; if he had been distracted by other cultivations, how could he have managed to bring the Hundred Jiao Body to Great Accomplishment today?
Before Li Hao could answer, Li Muxiu continued earnestly, “You have a great talent for Body Refinement, and that’s a good thing, but do not squander it! How many talents out there, because they’re young and arrogant, relying on their intelligence, study this and that, and end up knowing a little about everything, deemed jack of all trades, but guess what? They get smacked to death by a slap from those among their peers who are left behind.”
“Others only need to practice one move; if that move is strong enough, deadly enough, they can be unrivaled!”
Li Muxiu said, “You see people being named Sword Saint, Blade Saint, and even titles like Arrow King. They’re all famous figures; do they not understand the value of well-rounded development? But they all specialize in their fields, continuously advancing! A person’s life is limited, and it’s hard enough to reach the end of one path, let alone two; pursuing both is simply ruining one’s own future!”
Having said this, he addressed Li Hao, “Families like ours, we have an advantage in that we have a strong foundation, a relatively comfortable growth process, whereas those Jianghu heroes without background have to face all kinds of complexities from a young age, the hardships of life, and so forth, forced to learn whatever they can to survive.”
“But we are different; we have the luxury to choose!”
“They delve into poisons, medical skills, boxing, and swordplay, but so what? They may have an advantage when facing someone of the same realm, but how much time do you have to spend learning these? If it’s ten years, others spending the same ten years on one thing will have a higher realm than you. When the time comes, just being one or two levels higher in realm is enough to easily overpower you!”
“Therefore, only when you reach your limit, with no hope left in your life, should you consider broadening your scope. Otherwise, it’s unnecessary before that point.”
He spoke with heartfelt earnestness, and Li Hao understood his grandfather’s perspective.
Being a jack of all trades was powerful indeed, but time did not permit it.
However, this was for the average martial artist.
As for himself, Li Hao had the advantage of a system panel.
But without a sufficient number of Artistic Skill Points, Li Hao too could only specialize in the Sword Path and Physical Body Path. Indeed, even now, he prioritized the Physical Body Path and personal cultivation above all else.
After solemnly advising Li Hao, Li Muxiu sighed and resumed his casual demeanor, saying, “The Mystic Vein you mentioned comes from the Primordial Body Refining Skill. That’s also why this incomplete skill is allowed on the sixth floor. But to learn to open the Mystic Vein, you need to progressively cultivate to the third layer, which takes far too much time. This skill is even harder; those with high comprehension might take five to eight years, and those with lower comprehension, twenty or thirty years, might find it challenging!”
“Therefore, although the Mystic Vein is precious, it must be forsaken.”
“Oh?”
Li Hao wore an expression of curiosity, wrapped his legs, and sat cross-legged.
“The Mystic Vein, also known as the Great Yin Channel, is rumored to be one of one hundred and eight veins in the human body besides the normal meridian channels!”
Li Muxiu said, “My Li Family’s strongest, the Dragon River Divine Meridian, allows for the opening of fifty-four channels, while the royal family’s Dong Huang Scripture permits sixty-two. That’s already the strongest Meridian Opening Skill.”
“But reaching one hundred and eight is still too far off, so whether or not there really are that many has always been mere speculation.”
“However, outside of these one hundred and eight, there are two major veins, which are the Great Yin Channel and the Great Yang Meridian!”
“When these two major channels are opened, the cultivation techniques practiced will carry some special powers, making attacks fiercer and more domineering. At the same time, these two channels can hold more Qi Force and circulate it through the Zhou Tian Realm!”
He glanced at Li Hao and said, “If you can circulate a hundred cycles in one vein, then in the Great Yin Channel, you could achieve a thousand cycles—a tenfold difference! You could stack and accumulate a hundred cycles of Qi Force within the Great Yin Channel!”
“And a thousand cycles in one vein are not just a quantitative accumulation; it’s a qualitative transformation of explosive power. The specifics will become evident in battle. Hence, those who can open these two special channels are geniuses among geniuses, the best of the best, once in a hundred years!”
Li Hao suddenly understood—besides the Great Yin Channel, there was also the Great Yang Meridian.
The existence of these two special channels was equivalent to an extra twenty meridians.
Considering that the strongest technique of the royal family encompasses only sixty-four meridians, opening both special channels could mean an increase by one third!
By then, even if one were to practice the Li Family’s Dragon River Divine Meridian, it could unleash a force surpassing that of the royal family!
“It’s extremely difficult to open these two special channels; it requires fate, talent, and comprehension, and outside forces can hardly assist,” Li Muxiu observed Li Hao and said. “In the second generation of our Li Family, only three people have opened one special channel, and it’s only your ninth uncle who possesses both channels, showing unparalleled talent.”
With that, he couldn’t help but sigh.
Li Hao was somewhat stunned.
From what he had said, he thought such occurrences were extremely rare, yet within the second generation of the Li Family, there were already three individuals with such a meridian? And the ninth uncle, both?
“Little Nine was born with the innate Great Yang Meridian, while he opened the Great Yin Channel himself later in life. Even your old man only had one special channel, similar to your father.”
Li Muxiu shook his head as he spoke.
Li Hao was speechless—this ninth uncle was truly extraordinary.
“Alright, just focus on your cultivation,” Li Muxiu said to Li Hao. “Your talent is exceptional, but you were born with blocked meridians, making it more difficult for you than other Body Refinement practitioners. If you are unlucky, the Zhou Tian Realm might be your limit, so don’t be distracted. Refine the Thousand Jiaos Holy Body well. If you can reach the Fourth Layer, you may have a chance to break through to the Soul Succession Realm.”
“By then, you would be considered a martial artist who can stand on your own, at least not someone who can be easily killed.”
Li Hao nodded.
Seeing Li Hao so obedient, Li Muxiu felt gratified and said, “In your free time, take a look at the Dragon River Divine Meridian. If there’s anything you don’t understand, just ask me. Your father and the others all had to learn by themselves. Although there were instructors, your grandfather had quite a temper and never taught directly. It was always officers from the military who taught, and often before the instructor finished explaining, your father and his siblings had already mastered it. Little Nine could even extend the knowledge further, heh…”
It seemed that recalling that time brought a touch of a smile to the old man’s face.
Li Hao felt somewhat helpless.
There were too many prodigies in the Li Family, making his own extraordinary abilities seem rather ordinary.
Of course, he hadn’t leveraged all his efforts on collecting Skill Points yet, otherwise, he could have made further progress.
But life isn’t just about cultivating—it also includes living, or else, what would be the purpose of reliving this life?
In the following days, besides following the old master for morning fishing sessions, Li Hao spent his afternoons immersed in books about Qi cultivation techniques and secrets of meridian opening.
Half a month went by, and he had successfully added three top-notch scriptures to his panel.
Li Hao believed his comprehension was quite good; after all, he needed to grasp the basics to add them to his panel, and he managed one every five days, not too shabby for maintaining the Li Family’s reputation.
He heard that direct descendants of the Li Family took about half a month to grasp the basics of the supreme scriptures.
However, with the mindset of a person who had lived two lifetimes, Li Hao wasn’t proud. He merely considered it a normal performance.
It was just that these three scriptures were not part of the Body Refinement Realm, so his understanding of the third phase of the Physical Body Path remained unaffected even after adding the scriptures.
Instead, a new attribute of a great path appeared in his panel.
[Control Path: Not yet started]
Li Hao guessed that these three scriptures were part of the normal cultivation methods for martial artists, and that Control Path probably corresponded to the normal cultivation path.
Its name was just slightly odd.
But Li Hao didn’t think too much of it. As long as he could add points, it was fine.
And so, he once again realized the scarcity of Skill Points.
“Besides fishing and playing chess, it’s time to consider painting and even cooking…”
These were the types of arts recorded in the game, and without a doubt, they all could increase Skill Points.