Ji You had actually learned about the wonders of Cultivating and comprehending the Dao as early as in Yuyang County.
But truly engaging with Martial Skills and experiencing the real, tangible thrill of combat was a first for him, both in this life and his previous one.
Especially the involvement of Spiritual Qi in Martial Skills, which he found quite marvelous.
So, in a flash, one day, as the evening glow dyed the sky, Ji You emerged from the Trial Sword Forest and headed to the Immortal Meal Workshop for a meal. Due to his empty purse, he only ordered a stir-fried Immortal Sprout and a cold dish of Golden Spirit Plant to appease his rumbling stomach.
I wonder if Kuang Cheng has run out of money yet. I should go check on him another day…
People feel uncomfortable when they eat too much, and so do purses. Ji You couldn't bear to see a suffering purse and felt that even if he ate until he was full, he had to save it.
After eating, Ji Hanfei returned to his courtyard to wash up, changed his clothes, and walked against the encroaching night towards the Wudao Field, finding it still crowded under the lingering sunset.
Some of them were taking Medicinal Pills with one hand and forming hand seals with the other, their Divine Thoughts wandering beyond the heavens.
Especially Chu River and Lu Qingqiu; they had been sitting in the Wudao Field all day, surrounded by empty Medicinal Pill bottles lying haphazardly on the ground, and some Spirit Stones that had been depleted of their Mystic Light.
As those at Junior Third Realm Completion, they should have had the most Comprehension Ability, but at this moment, they racked their brains yet still couldn't sense the Heavenly Book.
The matter of Cultivating Immortality is truly profound and mysterious.
However, even if they couldn't sense the Heavenly Book, they naturally had other methods.
That was to continuously stack supplementary Medicinal Pills, not to demand a connection with the Heavenly Book, but to first sense the Heavenly Dao.
So after this day, Lu Qingqiu's glabella already had a Mystic Light, and the one on Chu River's glabella was even brighter.
The first realm of the Upper Five Realms is called Sky Soaring. As the name suggests, it means comprehending the profound mysteries of the Heavenly Dao. Each time the sensing deepens, the Heavenly Dao gives a Mystic Light as feedback.
When nine Mystic Lights gather on the glabella, the Cultivator is considered to have successfully broken through the threshold of the Upper Five Realms.
These two comprehended for a day, witnessing the moment of nothingness to existence when heaven and earth first opened. This was considered an initial glimpse of the threshold, and they had already exhausted their Medicinal Pills.
Ji You stepped over the crowd and found a spot among them, sitting cross-legged on the ground.
His Spirit Origin had issues, but his Divine Thought and Comprehension Ability were still decent. Although he didn't know if he could Breakthrough the realm, he could naturally try to comprehend the Dao.
As he sat down, dozens of students nearby couldn't help but exit their Dao comprehension state, slightly opening their eyes.
"Practicing Martial Skills for four hours, and then coming to comprehend the Dao at nightfall?"
"Indeed, those who can reach Junior Third Realm Completion before the age of twenty are diligent individuals."
"But he has no Medicinal Pill assistance and willingly wastes most of his time practicing useless Martial Skills, which is truly perplexing."
"After all, he's from a remote area. This time, it's probably a whim. Little does he know that being one step behind means he'll only be able to look on in despair for the rest of his life."
Chu River and Lu Qingqiu also heard the discussions around them and thought it was a good thing. After all, it concerned the competition for Inner Courtyard qualifications, and the lower Ji You's threat was, the better.
At the same time, Ji You began to release his Divine Thought, doing his best to reach the boundless deep space, to explore the faint light within the dark ignorance.
This was the method of sensing that Cao Instructor had mentioned.
He had sought out Cao Instructor last night to pre-study Dao comprehension, but Cao Instructor spoke vaguely and couldn't describe it in detail, only saying that if one comprehended the Dao, one would know it.
Ji You then asked how to confirm if one had comprehended the Dao.
Cao Instructor then said that if one comprehended the Dao, one would know it, which angered Ji You into snatching two taels of silver from him as punishment.
The robbed Old Cao indeed became much more sincere, telling him to try his best to let his Divine Thought search upwards. The closer to heaven, the stronger the sensing would be.
However, Divine Thought flying into the sky was an extremely exhausting task, consuming a lot of Spiritual Qi and physical strength. Most people couldn't last even half an hour before having to stop and rest.
But once that thought was relaxed, all previous efforts would be wasted, and one would have to start over.
The only difference was Chu River and Lu Qingqiu; they could quickly replenish themselves with Spirit Pills and Spirit Stones, naturally making them much faster than others.
At 3:30 pm , Ji You slowly opened his eyes, his forehead already covered in sweat, realizing that Divine Thought comprehension was even more strenuous than practicing Martial Skills.
"No wonder everyone says that the Upper Five Realms is a process that requires the accumulation of Medicinal Pills."
"Only those like Chu River and Lu Qingqiu, who start by taking Medicinal Pills and consuming Spirit Stones, can have sustained power when they are about to be exhausted…"
However, Ji You vaguely heard that Medicinal Pills that could directly act on Divine Thought could only be refined by the Dan Sect within the Seven Great Immortal Sects. Because they were rare and valuable, their price was exorbitant, so even those from slightly ordinary family backgrounds couldn't afford to try them.
Continue.
Ji You closed his eyes again, his Divine Thought continuously soaring into the sky.
His method was a bit clumsier than others: each time, he would try to go a bit higher than the last, thereby breaking through his limits.
But the boundless deep space was truly boundless, yet human strength always had its limits.
After several attempts, Ji You felt his head about to split open each time.
At this moment, some other exhausted Disciples opened their eyes, panting as they looked at Ji You.
"He can actually comprehend for half an hour at a time?"
"Why not? Do you really think that reaching Junior Third Realm Completion before the age of twenty is just luck?"
"But the Instructors in the courtyard all say that practicing Martial Skills consumes a lot of physical strength, and if physical strength is weak, Divine Thought will be weak."
"You can tell by his pale lips that he is already at the end of his rope. Look at Chu River and Lu Qingqiu; they always exceed an hour each time. Even with Medicinal Pills, it's still extraordinary."
Everyone looked over upon hearing this and saw the identical Mystic Light on Lu Qingqiu's and Chu River's glabella flickering on and off.
As for Ji You, though he tried repeatedly, he never touched the threshold.
The three of them were all competitors for the Inner Courtyard spots this year, but perhaps the outcome would emerge before then, depending on who could perceive the Heavenly Book.
It's just that Ji You… was too far behind.
Just then, Ji Hanfei's glabella suddenly relaxed, and the relaxation of his facial muscles caused his cheekbones to drop slightly.
But soon, his relaxed glabella suddenly furrowed tightly again, and from then on, it never relaxed even a jot.
Lu Qingqiu was already exhausted at this point. She slowly opened her eyes, looked at Ji You, whose forehead was sweating, observed him for a while, then looked at Du Zhu beside her.
"How many hours does he do at a time?"
"The first time was close to half an hour, the second time was half an hour, and now it has exceeded a quarter of an hour."
More than half an hour? Lu Qingqiu fell silent upon hearing this.
Without using Spirit Stones to replenish her energy, she could only last a little over half an hour, plus three quarters of an hour.
And this Ji You had already practiced Martial Skills all day, exhausting himself before coming here, yet he could still persist for over half an hour, which couldn't help but cause concern.
In her opinion, Ji You, who had impulsively gone to practice Martial Skills, would definitely not go again tomorrow. If he also comprehended the Dao from morning till night, his threat would greatly increase.
Just then, Ji You suddenly exhaled, lowered his head, and panted for a while, feeling a bit dizzy.
This time he flew higher, but he also knew it would be difficult to advance even half a step further. However, this was an excellent way to train the strength of his Divine Thought, and it also greatly benefited his Martial Skills.
His Divine Thought consumption was too great today, and with no Medicinal Pills to replenish it, he could only stop here.