msmithbooks Chapter 284 - 154: Advancement Mission, Meridian Opening Perfection
Chapter 284 - 154: Advancement Mission, Meridian Opening Perfection
Ye Qi gripped two jet-black daggers, his entire being seeming to merge with the shadows.
His speed was so incredible that even Lin Ye was alarmed.
It wasn’t a simple linear dash powered by an eruption of Qi and Blood, but a flicker that was almost like a spatial jump.
At times he would melt into the shadows on the ground, only to silently emerge behind Zhang Daoxuan, his daggers tracing lethal, cold glints of light.
But no matter how bizarre his Body Technique or how cunning his attacks, the iron sword hovering in the air would always strike second but arrive first, precisely parrying his every surprise assault.
"CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!"
The dense clang of metal on metal was incessant.
Zhang Daoxuan’s Martial Arts Spirituality was actually Sword Control!
Although he could only control the single sword he carried on his back, that alone was terrifying enough.
Under his mental control, the sword moved as if it had a life of its own—a perfect fusion of offense and defense, without a single flaw.
Ye Qi’s figure once again sank into the shadows. The next moment, he appeared above Zhang Daoxuan’s head, daggers crossed, and pounced like a hawk!
But Zhang Daoxuan didn’t even lift his head.
He just gave a light wave of his hand.
The iron sword instantly split into three. The three sword gleams wove into a net, completely sealing off all of Ye Qi’s attack routes.
Ye Qi’s pupils contracted. He forcefully twisted his body in mid-air, trying to evade the net of swords.
But one of the sword gleams suddenly accelerated and, with a SQUELCH, pierced straight through his shoulder blade!
Ye Qi let out a muffled groan and fell from the air. The battle was over.
Lin Ye was shaken.
This Zhang Daoxuan’s strength was also unfathomable.
Dongfang Zhen stroked his chin from the side, commenting, "Daoxuan’s Flying Sword is a bit faster than when he fought me last time."
"Ye Qi is definitely fast, but unfortunately, his attack power is too weak. He can’t break through Daoxuan’s defense."
Lin Ye nodded. Before he could think about it further, he noticed there were no more ongoing duels in the spectator list.
Everyone else’s battles had already ended.
He casually clicked on a battle replay.
The opponents were Lu Jiuxiao and Wei Shuying.
The progress bar showed that this battle had lasted less than a minute.
The scene began.
Lu Jiuxiao roared and directly activated his Qilin Transformation Ancestral Spirituality. His body was covered in crimson Scale Armor, his aura surged, and he charged violently toward Wei Shuying.
However, Wei Shuying just stood there quietly, not moving an inch.
Her incomparably beautiful face was expressionless, her gaze fixed coldly on the charging Lu Jiuxiao.
The moment Lu Jiuxiao was about to close in, his madly dashing figure suddenly stiffened, and his speed dropped sharply.
Lin Ye could clearly see a thin layer of frost appearing not from the outside, but from beneath Lu Jiuxiao’s skin, rapidly spreading across his body.
Lu Jiuxiao’s movements became slower and slower, and the expression on his face changed from fury to horror and pain.
The blood in his body, and indeed all his bodily fluids, were being directly frozen by an invisible force!
A few seconds later, Lu Jiuxiao had turned into a lifelike ice sculpture. Maintaining his charging posture, he crashed to the ground.
The battle was over.
Lin Ye sucked in a cold breath.
’This Wei Shuying’s Martial Arts Spirituality is just too tyrannical.’
「...」
Consciousness returned to his body.
Lin Ye opened his eyes. The surrounding scene changed from the pure white space back to the Martial Arts Hall.
The other students also began to wake up one after another, each with a different expression on their face: some excited, some dejected, some resentful.
Yin Liulan wasted no time. Zhou Yan, standing beside her, immediately began to announce the scores from this practical assessment.
"Dongfang Zhen, victory, plus 50 points."
"Zhang Daoxuan, victory, plus 50 points."
"Wei Shuying, victory, plus 50 points."
...
"Lin Ye, defeat, plus 30 points."
"Ye Qi, defeat, plus 30 points."
"Lu Jiuxiao, defeat, plus 0 points."
Lin Ye was a bit surprised to hear that he still received points despite losing.
Meanwhile, Lu Jiuxiao’s face was as black as the bottom of a pot as he sat sulking in a corner by himself.
The distribution of these points was directly correlated with their performance, having little to do with victory or defeat.
Although Lin Ye and Ye Qi had lost, they both demonstrated combat performance far exceeding their realms. Only Lu Jiuxiao’s loss had been disgraceful, which was why he received no points.
The scores were tallied. At that very moment, a long-awaited system notification sounded in Lin Ye’s mind.
[Host has been detected to have reached the corresponding level and is facing a new challenge. Racial Advancement Quest issued!]
[Quest: The Fight for the Top Spot!]
[Description: The Qiming General Stars are a gathering of elites. To become the ultimate lord, you must first step over the heads of all the geniuses of your generation and ascend to the highest position!]
[Quest Objective: Obtain the top spot in this Qiming General Star Training Camp!]
[Quest Reward: +200,000 EXP, +10 Skill Points, Racial Template Advancement—Beastman Shield Guard!]
[Beastman Shield Guard: All Attributes growth coefficient increased. Unlock brand-new Phase 2 skill: Backlash!]
’The racial advancement quest is finally here!’
’Backlash?’
Although Lin Ye didn’t know the specific effect of this new skill, just from the name, it was probably related to his Defense Power and Life Value.
’Becoming the top student, huh...’
Lin Ye’s gaze fell on Dongfang Zhen and Zhang Daoxuan not far away.
These two great mountains stood in his way.
Zhang Daoxuan’s Flying Sword was unpredictable, his strength far exceeding his stats on paper. Before they actually fought, Lin Ye had no confidence he could win for sure.
As for Dongfang Zhen, Lin Ye had a strong intuition that the Celestial Thunder Seal that had finished him off was still not his true trump card.
’To surpass them, I have to at least break through to the Gang Condensation Realm.’
’Otherwise, the suppression from the difference in realms is just too much to handle.’
At the same time, Lin Ye hadn’t forgotten about the Nirvana Tower, which was set to open in a week.
’The key to unlocking Phase 3 is in that tower!’
「...」
「A week passed in the blink of an eye.」
Inside the Martial Arts Hall, Lin Ye sat cross-legged, his mind sinking into his body.
This past week, his schedule had been packed to the brim.
Mornings were still for Cultivation Technique and Observation Skill classes, while afternoons had become martial arts guidance sessions personally taught by Nie Cang.
Although Nie Cang was stern and rarely smiled, he was extremely serious and responsible when it came to teaching.
Based on Lin Ye’s previous Cloud-Piercing Army-Breaking Spear Skill, he tailored his teaching to his student’s aptitude and taught Lin Ye a brand-new spear skill—"Chasing the Stars and Catching the Moon."
This spear skill emphasized using speed to counter speed, with a ceaseless barrage of moves that complemented the fierce and domineering style of the Cloud-Piercing Army-Breaking Spear Skill.
Nie Cang’s advice was for Lin Ye to master both "Chasing the Stars and Catching the Moon" and the Cloud-Piercing Army-Breaking Spear Skill, take the best of both, and forge his own path in spear arts.
In addition to that, Nie Cang also taught him a Body Technique called "Stepping on Gang and Treading on the Dipper," specifically designed for spear-wielding Martial Artists to maneuver on the battlefield.
Although it wasn’t the kind of open-hearted, devoted master-disciple bond he had with Chen Meng, Lin Ye was already very satisfied.
Cultivation Technique, Observation Skill, a new spear skill, a new Body Technique.
Lin Ye wished he could split one day into two. Aside from eating, he poured all his time into cultivation and practical combat training with Dongfang Zhen.
After a week, the results were significant.
He had successfully reached LV30.
But his experience bar was completely stuck, unable to gain even a sliver more.
The system’s prompt was simple: Realm and level do not match.
Only by breaking through to the Gang Condensation Realm could he continue to level up.
Without the aid of Source Crystals, Lin Ye could only use the most primitive method: circulating the Tai Xu Two Principles True Understanding to draw the world’s source energy into his body.
He used this source energy, which couldn’t be converted into experience points, to refine the surplus Qi and Blood in his body and assault the remaining meridians.
After a week of arduous cultivation, the Yinwei Meridian and Yangwei Meridian were opened one after another.
And now, he was assaulting the final meridian of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians—the Yangqiao Meridian!
Guided by him, his surging Qi and Blood formed a torrent, crashing against that final barrier again and again.
「Several minutes later.」
Lin Ye’s body trembled slightly.
A soft sound, as if from the depths of his soul.
The barrier that had troubled him for days shattered instantly!
In an instant, an unprecedented feeling of relief spread through his entire body.
The Twelve Main Meridians and the Eight Extraordinary Meridians were now completely cleared!
Lin Ye looked inward and saw that all the meridians in his body were shining with a brilliant light. They connected with each other, ultimately forming a perfect and flawless Circulation of the Celestial Cycle.
A vast amount of Qi and Blood flowed endlessly within it, without the slightest hint of stagnation.
He felt his control over every sliver of Qi and Blood in his body had reached a whole new level.
With a thought, Lin Ye willed it.
An imperceptible wisp of Qi and Blood separated from his fingertip.
’Success!’
If, before, the smallest unit of Qi and Blood he could mobilize was at least ten-odd points...
...then now, he could precisely control a unit of Qi and Blood as small as 0.1!
This meant he finally possessed the most basic requirement to break through to the Gang Condensation Realm!
Lin Ye slowly opened his eyes, a sharp glint of light flashing within them before disappearing.
’Next, it’s time to prepare for the breakthrough to Gang Condensation!’