Chapter 55

Chapter 55

Half a Year of Cultivation, Snow Falls on Cloud Firmament

After Lu Chengfeng entered seclusion, he only allowed Luo Suyi to bring him three meals a day, refusing any other visitors and not returning to their bedroom at night.

During the day, he consumed the Five Qi Convergence Pills that Luo Yong had exchanged for with his merit points. These pills were refined from various harmonizing treasures of the five elements and were extremely precious. Consuming one was equivalent to a month of arduous cultivation.

Lu Chengfeng had earned quite a few merit points during the beast tide and had exchanged them for a total of eighteen Five Qi Convergence Pills, saving him over a year of hard work.

Combined with the legacy of the Inner Peak elder’s insights into inner energy cultivation, his gains were far greater than others.

Since refining the legacy of Inner Peak Elder Li Guan, Lu Chengfeng’s swordsmanship and movement skills had improved rapidly. Only his inner energy cultivation progress was less than satisfactory.

It took him over half a month just to convert his Azure Wave Inner Energy into the Black Crane Heart Method, with significant losses during the process. As a result, his Black Crane Heart Method cultivation only barely reached the tenth level.

The ‘Black Crane Thousand Shadows Nether Sword Scripture’ was composed of the Nether Sword Technique, the Thousand Shadows Movement Technique, and the Black Crane Heart Method. It was a first-rate martial art that combined swordsmanship, movement, and inner energy cultivation, achieving both internal and external mastery.

Elder Li Guan of Black Crane Peak had cultivated this technique to the twenty-fourth level, comprehending the Nether Sword Intent. His essence, Qi, and spirit merged into one, transforming into True Qi, allowing him to kill with a single thought.

Having received his legacy, Lu Chengfeng should have been able to smoothly cultivate Sword Intent without any bottlenecks.

However, to achieve Sword Intent, one’s essence, Qi, and spirit needed to be refined and flawless, and one’s external martial arts skills had to reach their peak. Only then could the internal and external merge, allowing essence, Qi, and spirit to intertwine and sublimate into inner True Qi, which could then nurture the pure and focused Sword Intent.

Lu Chengfeng had mastered both the Nether Sword Technique and the Thousand Shadows Movement Technique to the eighteenth level, but his Black Crane Heart Method was lagging behind, preventing him from instantly achieving the Nether Sword Intent.

The essence of inner energy cultivation lies in visualization to harmonize the body’s essence, Qi, and spirit, supplemented by various treasures beneficial to the human body, making one’s essence, Qi, and spirit flawless, abundant, and overflowing, thus giving rise to inner energy.

This is a gradual process, concerning one’s very life. Even with the legacy’s insights and the ability to visualize and circulate inner energy proficiently, one still needs to cultivate step by step.

Only by cultivating inner energy to the eighteenth level, achieving perfection in essence, Qi, and spirit, can one naturally attain Sword Intent.

Lu Chengfeng wasn’t impatient. At his age, his current martial arts achievements were already considered prodigious. Inner energy cultivation couldn’t be rushed; haste would only lead to Qi Deviation.

Every three days, he consumed a Five Qi Convergence Pill. The pill melted in his mouth, nourishing his internal organs and spirit like nectar, causing his essence to overflow and his inner energy to surge.

At this moment, Lu Chengfeng visualized a black crane. This crane stood eight feet tall, its wingspan reaching twelve feet. Its entire body was covered in black feathers, gleaming like polished bronze. Its iron beak shone with a cold light, capable of tearing through metal.

Only the feathers on its crown were white, emitting a halo that enveloped its body, resembling a divine bird from legends.

However, this black crane in his visualization had no eyes.

The act of “dotting the eyes” was the essence of inner energy cultivation.

Using his own essence, Qi, and spirit as ink, he infused them into the image, painting eyes for the black crane. One day, when the crane opened its eyes, his essence, Qi, and spirit would merge with it, the crane entering his body, achieving unity. This would mark the completion of the eighteenth level, the pinnacle of the mortal realm.

When a martial artist cultivated their inner energy to this level, they would be free from illness and live a long life. The longest-living among them could reach one hundred and twenty years old before peacefully passing away.

Lu Chengfeng cultivated steadily, visualizing the black crane and refining the pills. Time flowed by unnoticed. Having received the legacy of an Inner Peak elder, he had already mastered the Black Crane Heart Method. Every bit of medicinal power exerted threefold its usual effect, and his cultivation progressed rapidly.

Apart from cultivating his inner energy, he put aside swordsmanship and movement techniques during this period, focusing solely on comprehending the Sword Intent within the legacy. Every time he sensed it, even slightly, he gained significant insights.

When his mental energy was depleted, he would examine the memory fragments of the three individuals, searching for useful information.

Time passed slowly, and half a year went by unnoticed.

During this period, Luo Suyi informed him that Lady Qiutong and her maid, Die’er, had settled on Bixia Peak. Although Die’er privately complained about Lu Chengfeng’s prolonged absence, Lady Qiutong remained secluded in her courtyard, tending to flowers and brewing tea, seemingly content.

Lu Chengfeng didn’t mind much. The woman was merely seeking shelter and stability through his status, and he was only interested in her legacy. They had never met and had no emotional connection. It was best if they could coexist peacefully.

Li Mofeng, on the other hand, returned after several months away, bringing news that Su Wanqing’s situation in the Su Clan was not ideal. Her mother was a servant, and her father disregarded her as a concubine’s daughter. The clan had decided to marry her off to an elder of the powerful Li Clan in the Central Capital as a concubine.

In the current world, there was no unified rule. The northern regions of You, Yan, Yun, Liang, and Qing were dominated by sects and aristocratic families, each controlling their own territory.

In the southern regions of Xiang, Chu, Wu, Yue, Han, Yang, and Man, apart from the jungle-covered and miasma-ridden Southern Barbarian Province, the three kingdoms of Chu, Han, and Wu vied for supremacy.

Only the Central Plains, vast and populous, with numerous renowned sects and schools gathered there, forming an alliance to deter bandits and evildoers, had grown increasingly prosperous in recent years.

Among the thirteen provinces in the world, the Central Plains was the most esteemed, and its capital was known as the Divine Capital. The citizens of the Divine Capital were proud of their origin.

The Li Clan was a prominent family in the Divine Capital. For the Su Clan to curry favor with them by marrying off a concubine’s daughter to an elder of the Li Clan was perfectly normal. Such things were not uncommon among the aristocratic families.

When Li Mofeng returned, he brought a token, a broken jade hairpin that belonged to Su Wanqing. Lu Chengfeng fell silent upon seeing it.

“Second Senior Sister gave this to you, Senior Brother, to express her resolve to rather shatter like jade than remain intact as a tile,” Li Mofeng said before taking his leave. After all, she was his fellow disciple, and he couldn’t bear to see her forced into a tragic fate, so he offered this subtle reminder.

Lu Chengfeng was speechless. He could only put away the broken hairpin. After much contemplation, he instructed Li Mofeng to go down the mountain again.

Apart from these two matters, Lu Chengfeng ignored all other trivial affairs and focused on cultivating diligently on the mountain. When heavy snow fell and the harsh winter arrived, he finally emerged from seclusion, his cultivation having reached a new level.

Half a year of cultivation had allowed him to break through five levels of inner energy, equivalent to seven or eight years of hard work for others. His gains were immense.

However, all the Five Qi Convergence Pills had been consumed, and the two Cold-Scaled Firetail Fish were gone. He had also fully digested the memories of Zhao Changzhen, Xiao Qi, and Li Guan, absorbing all their past experiences. Further seclusion would be pointless, so he finally stepped out of the chamber where he had spent the past six months.

When Lu Chengfeng emerged, a blizzard raged. The north wind howled, especially fierce on the mountain, its icy gusts cutting like knives against his face.

He wore a thin white robe, his long hair loose, a faint stubble growing on his chin, adding a touch of maturity.

He didn’t use his inner energy for protection or his lightness skill. He let the snowflakes fall on his body and forehead, his boots crunching in the snow.

“The world is a vast expanse of white, yet it can’t conceal the filth within.”

Lu Chengfeng extended his hand, and cold snowflakes melted in his palm. The coolness mirrored the chill that arose in his heart as he gazed at the vast Cloud Firmament mountain range.

During his six months of seclusion, the sect had been in turmoil. Shocking news had spread throughout the Inner and Outer Peaks, causing countless disciples to leave the mountain. Who knew how many remained at the sect now?!

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