Inside the carriage.
After Jiang Ning left, Xie Xiaojiu and Lü Yi stared at each other, wide-eyed.
Though they were both unbearably hot and longed to remove their clothing for some relief, they couldn't bring themselves to do so in front of others.
Especially after Jiang Ning stepped out, they felt there was no longer any need to undress.
The heat was uncomfortable, but not unbearable.
At that moment, Xie Xiaojiu glanced at the fair skin exposed at Lü Yi's chest and couldn't help but purse her lips before straightening her posture slightly.
Lü Yi was instantly drawn to Xie Xiaojiu's movement, her gaze falling on Xie Xiaojiu's chest.
Then, she quietly tugged at her collar, covering the exposed skin, and felt somewhat deflated.
Outside the carriage.
Jiang Ning was unaware of what was happening inside.
He sat on the carriage shaft, his inner energy gathering in his palm, where it quickly condensed into a mist-like white tiger.
Within the tiger's forehead, a tiger bone pattern materialized.
In just an instant, he had manifested the pattern.
As the pattern took form, he once again sensed the change in his inner energy it now carried an extraordinary power, brimming with a violent, murderous aura.
This transformation gave him the feeling that it could dissolve bones and melt metal.
"Is this the power of divine patterns?" Jiang Ning murmured to himself.
Experiencing the force bestowed by this pattern anew, he felt even more convinced that the term "divine patterns" was well-deserved.
He now had a deeper understanding of Hong Minghu's earlier words about these patterns embodying rules and profound truths.
Just the manifestation of a pattern alone held such might he couldn't even imagine how powerful the owner of this tiger bone must have been in life.
After experimenting for a while, he dispersed the inner energy in his hand.
Then, he recalled Hong Minghu's earlier remarks.
The Eight Extraordinary Meridians, the Twelve Primary Meridians, and countless collateral branches.
Expanding the collateral branches of the human body's meridians would greatly enhance the efficiency of inner energy release.
This was also the biggest gap between him and Hong Minghu before.
"This explanation… shares similarities with what was recorded in traditional Chinese medicine in my past life."
"Internal force and inner energy also have overlapping principles."
"It seems that perhaps the predecessors of my past life had uncovered some truths, but civilization ultimately chose a different path, causing the knowledge they had painstakingly explored to be buried in the dust of history."
As his thoughts wandered to the history of his past life, his mind drifted.
After a moment, he shook his head, dispelling the distracting thoughts.
"The Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the Twelve Primary Meridians I must unlock them as soon as possible. They're crucial to the efficiency of my inner energy release and will significantly boost my strength!"
"But it's a bit strange. Why didn't the fifth-rank insights given to me by Granny Bai mention any of this? There wasn't even any record of martial techniques?"
He pondered for a long time but couldn't figure out the reason.
For now, he could only classify it as unimportant.
After all, he had long been familiar with the concepts of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the Twelve Primary Meridians.
He hadn't learned about them from martial arts manuals but from medical texts, he had studied to improve his literacy and comprehension.
Those medical texts often mentioned the meridians of the human body.
Based on his understanding:
The Eight Extraordinary Meridians referred to the Conception Vessel (Ren Mai), Governing Vessel (Du Mai), Thrusting Vessel (Chong Mai), Girdle Vessel (Dai Mai), Yin Heel Vessel (Yin Qiao Mai), Yang Heel Vessel (Yang Qiao Mai), Yin Linking Vessel (Yin Wei Mai), and Yang Linking Vessel (Yang Wei Mai).
Unlike the Twelve Primary Meridians, the Eight Extraordinary Meridians were not directly connected to the internal organs and lacked paired relationships. Their pathways were unique, hence the name "extraordinary."
The Twelve Primary Meridians formed the main framework of the meridian system, including the three yin meridians of the hand, the three yang meridians of the hand, the three yang meridians of the foot, and the three yin meridians of the foot, collectively known as the "primary meridians."
As for the countless collateral branches of the human body's meridians, they were innumerable, spreading throughout the body. No one had ever managed to document them all in detail.
Jiang Ning briefly recalled the diagrams of the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the Twelve Primary Meridians recorded in the books, and they quickly surfaced in his mind.
"Let's give it a try!"
"With my current physical body, even if my heart were destroyed, it could regenerate quickly. There's no harm in experimenting freely."
With that thought, Jiang Ning closed his eyes.
His mind sank into his body, and he soon located the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the Twelve Primary Meridians.
In the next moment, the vast inner energy in his dantian began to gather, condensing without release.
According to the records in the books, the dantian was located three inches below the navel, connected to the kidneys and the gate of life.
A short while later, his inner energy traveled upward along the Conception Vessel, passing through the abdomen, chest, and throat, reaching the spot between his eyebrows.
As his inner energy paused briefly there, he immediately felt a swelling pain in that area.
"This spot…" Jiang Ning was momentarily stunned.
In his past life, he had once been quite interested in Taoism and had studied some related knowledge.
Now that his inner energy had reached the spot between his eyebrows, it instantly reminded him of a certain concept.
In Taoist teachings, the area between the eyebrows was known as the "residence of the spirit," also called the upper dantian.
Cultivating the upper dantian could elevate one's spiritual state, potentially leading to transcendent enlightenment and self-realization.
Though the martial arts knowledge he had encountered in this world made no mention of this, he didn't believe predecessors had never discovered it.
His lack of awareness was likely just due to his limited exposure and understanding.
At that moment, his expression suddenly changed, and a muffled grunt escaped his nose.
The next second, he felt liquid trickling from his nostrils.
He raised a hand to wipe it and, upon opening his eyes, saw his fingers stained with bright red blood.
"Indeed… one must never let their mind wander during cultivation."
At that critical moment, he had been distracted.
He suddenly felt his inner energy go out of control. The once docile energy transformed into a raging beast in an instant, surging wildly and pouring downward from between his eyebrows, tearing through his Conception Vessel and causing internal bleeding, which soon led to blood trickling from his nostrils.
For an ordinary martial artist, this would be considered a relatively mild case of qi deviation, requiring rest and recuperation to fully recover.
But at this moment, he sensed no further abnormalities within his body.
He wiped the blood from his nose, steadied his mind, and began inspecting his body with inner vision.
His spiritual awareness swept through his entire being everything had returned to normal, with no traces left behind.
It was as if the loss of control over his inner energy and the resulting qi deviation had been nothing more than an illusion.
Yet the lingering blood in his nostrils told him otherwise.
It wasn't an illusion.
Rather, his body's regenerative ability had become absurdly powerful.
The injuries inside him had healed completely in an instant.
Moreover, he noticed that after the rampage of his inner energy, his Conception Vessel was now fully unblocked and significantly widened.
"It works!"
The next moment, the inner energy in his dantian gathered once more, surging upward along the Conception Vessel, passing through his abdomen, chest, and throat, reaching the point between his eyebrows.
After a brief pause at the upper dantian, it continued along the Governing Vessel, rising to the crown of his head the Baihui point the highest point of the body.
From there, it descended along the Governing Vessel, passing through his back and waist before reaching the coccyx.
Then, it flowed back down the Conception Vessel, returning to the lower dantian, completing a small celestial cycle.
The rush of inner energy made him feel as though his Conception and Governing Vessels had been thoroughly unblocked, their pathways expanded.
"Seems like no issues!" Sensing the changes within, he murmured to himself.
Then, Jiang Ning steadied his mind once more.
His inner energy surged from his dantian, first passing through the Governing Vessel, Conception Vessel, Thrusting Vessel, Girdle Vessel, Yin Linking Vessel, Yang Linking Vessel, Yin Heel Vessel, and Yang Heel Vessel.
Next, it coursed through the three yin meridians of the hand, the three yang meridians of the hand, the three yin meridians of the foot, and the three yang meridians of the foot before finally returning to the dantian.
Thus, a grand celestial cycle was completed.
When Jiang Ning opened his eyes again, he felt refreshed and invigorated.
His inner energy surged, instantly coalescing into a mist-like white tiger in his palm.
Compared to before, the speed had increased by a fraction.
Indeed, the Daoist grand celestial cycle method he had learned in his past life was effective.
In that case, it was time to expand his meridians further.
Having made his decision, Jiang Ning closed his eyes once more.
The inner energy in his dantian erupted like a raging river, rushing upward along the Governing Vessel.
In an instant
A sharp, excruciating pain tore through him.
It was the agony of his Governing Vessel being ripped apart.
For an ordinary martial artist, encountering such a situation would be cause for immediate alarm they would have to suppress the surging inner energy and allow the Governing Vessel to heal slowly.
But for Jiang Ning in his current state, this was nothing to fear.
The pain meant little to him.
His inner energy continued to rage like a roaring river, rampaging through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the Twelve Primary Meridians.
After completing one grand celestial cycle, he inspected his body with inner vision.
His spiritual awareness swept through every meridian hand and already healed completely.
No traces of the earlier damage remained.
Moreover, after being torn apart and restored once, his meridians had noticeably widened.
A quick test confirmed that the explosiveness of his inner energy had increased significantly.
The improvement was stark compared to before.
"Again!"
Motivation surged within him.
Such visible progress made him eager to push further.
Thus, he cleared his mind of distractions.
Each burst of inner energy was stronger than the last.
The impact of his Eight Extraordinary Meridians and Twelve Primary Meridians grew more intense with every cycle.
Repeated tearing and healing made his meridians broader and more resilient.
By the time the carriage stopped at the entrance of the Xie residence
Jiang Ning opened his eyes.
The two guards at the gate spotted him, and one immediately turned to rush inside.
"Xiao Jiu, we're home," Jiang Ning called out.
A voice came from inside the carriage.
"My lord, I'm not quite ready to step out yet."
"No matter. We'll wait here a while longer," Jiang Ning replied.
Then, he closed his eyes again.
He continued guiding his inner energy to expand his Eight Extraordinary Meridians and Twelve Primary Meridians.
A short while later
At the main gate of the Xie residence
Xie Zhengtian's figure hurried into view.
His steps were rushed, his clothing light, without even a fox fur draped over his shoulders.
When he reached the gate, he saw Jiang Ning seated on the carriage's shaft, legs crossed in a lotus position, hands resting on his knees in meditation, his expression serene and detached.
At a glance, Xie Zhengtian understood Jiang Ning was still deep in cultivation.
He immediately softened his footsteps and signaled the guards to remain silent.
Another moment passed.
Watching Jiang Ning's composed demeanor, resembling that of a Daoist master in deep meditation, Xie Zhengtian couldn't help but feel a surge of admiration.
To cultivate at every possible moment such dedication was something he had never witnessed in his life.
At this moment, he also began to understand why Jiang Ning had risen so rapidly in less than a year, becoming a legend in Luoshui County.
This was not just a display of talent but also a reward for hard work.
Just then, a cold wind blew, and Xie Zhengtian couldn't help but shiver.
In temperatures below minus ten degrees Celsius, he had deliberately refrained from wearing a fox fur cloak to demonstrate his sincerity, hurrying over to welcome Jiang Ning.
But he hadn't expected to find Jiang Ning deep in cultivation when he arrived at the gate.
How could he dare disturb Jiang Ning in such a state? Nor could he simply leave.
Thus, he had no choice but to wait where he was.
As time passed, the harsh winter cold, combined with his thin clothing, began to take its toll.
Without the warmth of the fox fur cloak, even though his martial arts training made him more resilient to the cold than an ordinary person, he had not yet reached the Internal Strengthening realm and was far from being impervious to extreme temperatures. Xie Zhengtian couldn't help but inwardly lament his suffering.
Soon, he felt his feet growing numb with cold and began stamping them lightly, circulating his qi and blood to warm himself.
In an instant, the chill in his body was forcefully expelled, replaced by a surge of warmth.
This was the power of qi and blood.
Meanwhile, on the carriage shaft.
As internal energy violently surged through the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the Twelve Primary Meridians, tearing them apart again and again before healing them, each completed major cycle marked a process of destruction and renewal.
With every major cycle, Jiang Ning could feel his meridians visibly widening and becoming more resilient.
After a long while, a soft voice came from inside the carriage.
"My lord, may I come out now?"
Hearing this, Jiang Ning immediately halted the circulation of his internal energy, letting it run wild like unbridled horses, rampaging through his meridians, causing tearing and shockwaves.
His brows furrowed slightly before relaxing again.
Now, even this kind of internal energy backlash from cultivation deviation could no longer tear his meridians apart it only caused slight pain.
This was proof of how much his meridians had improved, not just in width but also in toughness.
Jiang Ning opened his eyes and said, "Come out."
Then, he saw the carriage curtain being pushed aside as Xie Xiaojiu stepped out, fully dressed and wrapped in a black fox fur cloak.
What he didn't know was that Xie Xiaojiu had never taken off her clothes in the first place.
Behind her, Lüyi followed, standing half a step back behind the two of them.
On the other side, Xie Zhengtian, seeing this scene, quickly adjusted his expression and stepped forward with a warm smile.
"Commander Jiang, I knew I heard magpies singing this morning it must have been an omen of your arrival."
Jiang Ning smiled. "Patriarch Xie."
Xie Zhengtian glanced at Xie Xiaojiu, who had just stepped down from the carriage and felt a surge of joy.
Then he said, "The weather is terrible today. I was just worrying about how my daughter would return, but I never expected Commander Jiang to personally escort her home. I'm deeply grateful."
"To express my thanks, why not join me for a drink inside the manor?"
"The food and wine are already prepared!"
Hearing this, Jiang Ning shook his head. "I have matters to attend to today. Another time."
"Very well, another time it is!" Xie Zhengtian replied cheerfully, without any hesitation or unnecessary persistence.
"Father," Xie Xiaojiu called out indifferently as she stepped down from the carriage, her tone perfunctory.
"Farewell." Jiang Ning clasped his hands toward Xie Zhengtian.
"Safe travels, Commander Jiang!" Xie Zhengtian remained all smiles.
With that, Jiang Ning boarded the carriage again.
"Let's go."
He addressed Xie Xiaojiu and Xie Zhengtian beside the carriage before retreating into the cabin.
Lüyi followed him inside.
After removing her shoes, Jiang Ning sat cross-legged on the soft carpet.
"Don't disturb me later," he said.
"Yes, young master," Lüyi replied.
Then she watched as Jiang Ning assumed the orthodox Daoist meditation posture, sitting upright with his five centers facing upward.
Once he entered deep concentration, the internal energy in his dantian erupted.
It surged upward along the Conception Vessel, reaching the spot between his eyebrows, where it lingered briefly in the upper dantian before ascending further along the Governing Vessel, passing through the Baihui acupoint at the crown of his head the highest point of the body.
Along the way, his meridians were scoured and torn apart by the torrential internal energy, only to heal rapidly afterward.
The energy then descended from the Baihui point along the Governing Vessel, passing through his back and waist before reaching the coccyx.
From there, it continued downward along the Conception Vessel, returning to the lower dantian, completing a minor cycle.
With the completion of one minor cycle, his Conception and Governing Vessels had visibly widened and grown even more resilient.
Then, the internal energy set out from the dantian again, circulating along the path of a major cycle.
The carriage carried him homeward.
Outside, snowflakes drifted through the streets.
Inside the cabin, Jiang Ning repeatedly unleashed his internal energy, relentlessly ravaging his meridians, scouring them over and over.
His meridians tore and healed repeatedly, undergoing the tempering of destruction and renewal, becoming increasingly tough.
With no need to worry about the consequences, Jiang Ning's meridians underwent a rapid transformation in both resilience and width.
The expansion and toughening of his meridians meant he could now unleash a greater and more intense volume of internal energy in a short time.
This was an improvement in the efficiency of his internal energy output.
It would significantly enhance the explosive power of his internal energy.
Just like Hong Minghu in their previous battle, his internal energy had only reached the level of thirty years of cultivation, akin to a vast sea.
It hadn't even doubled Jiang Ning's reserves.
Yet, in that battle, Jiang Ning had witnessed firsthand what it meant to wield internal energy as boundless as the ocean.
With sheer explosive force, Hong Minghu had suppressed most martial artists, making the very air feel as though it had solidified.
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