Chapter 93 - 38: One Qi Sword Technique, Advancement! Innate Qi Sword

Chapter 93: Chapter 38: One Qi Sword Technique, Advancement! Innate Qi Sword

Jiang Xuan sat steadily in the bone-chillingly frozen Winter Lake for nearly the time it takes an incense stick to burn, stunning both Xia He and Di Chuan on the shore.

Subconsciously, Xia He turned to Di Chuan and asked, "Senior Brother Di, is the water of the Winter Lake not that cold? How long did you last in there back then?"

"..." Her question made Di Chuan’s face freeze instantly. After a long silence, he finally squeezed three words out from between his teeth: "Just three minutes."

"..." That reply made Xia He blink awkwardly. She had never imagined the gap between them could be so vast.

But she quickly thought of something, and her expression changed. She hurriedly turned to Granny Lan, "Granny, Jiang Xuan couldn’t have frozen stiff and passed out, could he? Should we..."

Before she could finish, Granny Lan gently tapped her on the forehead. "Don’t be hasty. Besides, my old eyes aren’t failing me just yet. There’s another reason Jiang Xuan has been able to last this long."

At this, a look of genuine amazement appeared on Granny Lan’s face for the first time. "His Nine Breath Qi Refining Method has already reached Third Realm Minor Success, allowing it to perform a Circulation automatically. His unceasing Magical Power is shielding him from the lake’s chill."

"So that’s how it is." Learning that Jiang Xuan wasn’t in trouble but was resisting with the Circulation of Heaven and Earth, Xia He finally breathed a sigh of relief.

But the next second, her eyes shot wide open.

"Wait, an automatic Circulation? The Nine Breath Qi Ingestion Technique at Third Realm Minor Success? ...Hasn’t it been less than ten days since the Daoist School started? How did he learn it already?!"

Granny Lan also fell silent at this question.

The Nine Breath Qi Refining Method—this was a Cultivation Technique that not only Jiang Xuan practiced. Xia He, Di Chuan, and even Granny Lan had all cultivated it before.

But precisely because they had cultivated it, they understood how difficult it was to advance this Cultivation Technique to the Third Realm.

Getting the Cultivation Technique to perform a Circulation automatically wasn’t something that could be achieved simply by having enough Magical Power to connect the start and end of the cycle. A Cultivator’s meridians were a crisscrossing maze, a hundred times more complex than the world’s most treacherous rivers. Even when guiding the flow with full concentration, it was inevitable to make a wrong turn or a mistake—this was why many at the Daoist School might spend a month and still fail to open all thirty-six acupoints.

To make the Cultivation Technique operate automatically, and unconsciously at that, often required months, or even years, of a Cultivator’s hard work.

Yet Jiang Xuan had managed it within ten days of the Daoist School’s opening. It was simply horrifying.

One could only say that the Dao Foundation Contract, being tailor-made, was just too powerful.

For others, the Nine Breath Qi Refining Method was an advanced skill that needed to be learned. But for Jiang Xuan, because of his perfect compatibility, it was like an instinct—as natural as a bird flying or a fish swimming.

It was precisely because he possessed this ability that Jiang Xuan had chosen to practice the Core Cultivation Method of Four Seasons Valley.

「...」

Unaware that Jiang Xuan possessed a Dao Foundation Contract, Granny Lan and the other two could only look on, stunned into silence.

But while the three of them were reeling in disbelief, Jiang Xuan’s situation beneath the Ice Lake was anything but good.

Although the Magical Power from his Circulation of Heaven and Earth could barely fend off the cold, the bone-piercing icy energy continued to seep relentlessly into his limbs and bones, threatening to freeze even his flowing Magical Power solid.

He had only lasted this long not just because his Cultivation Technique was running automatically, but also thanks to the Pure Yang Power left over from Senior Brother Wu Shan’s pot of Golden Sun Stuffed Rice, which he was desperately relying on.

However, the power of the Golden Sun Stuffed Rice would eventually run out, while the chill of the Winter Lake was practically infinite.

When the time it took for an incense stick to burn had passed, Jiang Xuan could finally hold on no longer.

His skin had turned a frozen, deathly blue, and the Magical Power throughout his body had come to a complete halt. Yet the grim, icy intent continued to surge in madly, seeking to freeze his internal organs, and even the very flame of his life.

The cold even penetrated his Flesh Body and invaded his Divine Soul. At this moment, Jiang Xuan could no longer perceive the outside world. Before him lay only endless darkness and cold, and even his thoughts grew stiff and sluggish.

In this state, Jiang Xuan was like a tiny, weak candle flame in a blizzard, in danger of being extinguished at any moment.

Moreover, his limbs were long since frozen and unresponsive; he didn’t even have the strength to struggle to the surface.

The shadow of death pressed down on his heart like an iceberg.

And this brush with death caused an unknown fear and despair to well up in Jiang Xuan’s heart.

There is great terror in the balance between life and death, a fact Jiang Xuan was now experiencing to its fullest extent.

However, faced with this mortal peril, Jiang Xuan was not overcome by fear.

The extreme desperation and his near-death state instead fully unleashed his potential.

In a desperate bid for survival, his will focused to its absolute limit. His [Heart・Sincerity (Sword)] Talent was triggered beyond its limits, and under his intense will to live, the Clear Heart Swordsman’s Active Skill, "Sword of the Spirit," erupted in a brilliant flash of light.

The instinct for survival caused an unprecedented power to begin quietly gathering within his body.

VMMMM—!

「...」

’He hasn’t shown a shred of panic from start to finish, nor has he struggled to escape the lake... I really don’t know if you’re just incredibly bold, completely unafraid of death, or if you simply trust this old woman.’

Granny Lan had naturally noticed that Jiang Xuan’s flame of life was about to be extinguished.

And this prompted her to prepare to intervene.

But just as her Magical Power began to surge—

SHIIING!

A clear sword cry suddenly shot up from beneath the Ice Lake. A peerlessly sharp Sword Intent erupted from within Jiang Xuan’s body!

"Hm?!"

This Sword Intent forcibly reignited the dying flame in Jiang Xuan’s heart and slashed open a rift in the surrounding cold.

The clear sword cry froze Granny Lan in place. Beside her, Di Chuan clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug deep into his palms, drawing blood, yet he remained completely unaware.

’One try... He actually succeeded in one try?!’

The thought that he himself had entered the lake a full twelve times before barely comprehending a wisp of the Guicang Annihilation Sword Intent, while Jiang Xuan had succeeded on his very first attempt, made Di Chuan, just like Wu Shan, feel as if his spirit had taken a critical hit.

But just as he was starting to question his own existence, Granny Lan spoke hesitantly, "No, what Jiang Xuan broke through to is not the Guicang Jie Mie Sword. And what he comprehended is not the Winter Solstice Sword Intent."

One had to admit, Granny Lan’s perception was frighteningly sharp; she had discerned Jiang Xuan’s situation with a single glance.

And indeed, what he had broken through to was not the Guicang Jie Mie Sword.

A moment ago, Jiang Xuan’s limbs had been stiff. His flesh and bones were frozen, and even his Divine Soul Fire was about to go out.

At that time, the only parts of his entire body that still had any activity were his Five Viscera.

Although they were fragile, because they were located in the innermost part of his body and protected by flesh, bone, and Magical Power, they had managed to retain some small measure of strength.

At the same time, the terrifying external pressure and extreme danger had caused Jiang Xuan’s Heart Spirit to become completely focused and unified.

His will to survive was like a sharp blade that split open the shackles of his Flesh Body, awakening all of his hidden potential.

And because Jiang Xuan had practiced the One Qi Sword Technique, he had long since nurtured a distinct Origin Qi within each of his Five Viscera.

Now, under the threat of death, the Five Qi that had always been impossible to merge were suddenly drawn together by the Sword of the Spirit and fused into one!

It could only be said that while there is great terror between life and death, there is also great opportunity. The extreme danger had allowed Jiang Xuan’s One Qi Sword Technique to take the most critical step forward.

[Warning: The Player’s body and Soul Spirit have approached their limits. You are on the verge of death.]

[Ding! In this desperate situation, your intense will to survive has fully activated your latent potential. Your Willpower has greatly increased!]

[You have used the Sword of the Spirit as a catalyst to forcibly unify the Five Viscera Origin Qi. Your One Qi Sword has evolved into—the Innate Qi Sword!]

[Your "One Qi Sword Technique" has been promoted. Current Level: Third Realm・Mastery (Minor Success)]