The moment the carriage came to a stop,
Jiang Ning opened his eyes from his meditative state.
At this point, he could already feel that no matter how wildly his internal energy surged within him, his meridians no longer showed any signs of strain.
"Let's go! Time to head home!" Jiang Ning said.
Right now, he wasn't even particularly concerned about the changes in Lü Yi after she absorbed his blood.
All he wanted was to see just how many times more efficient his internal energy explosion had become compared to before.
Hearing this, Lü Yi quickly followed Jiang Ning's steps.
After the two got off the carriage, the two Snow-Red Flame Colts instinctively made their way to the Wang family's stable, showing remarkable intelligence.
A short while later.
Jiang Ning arrived alone at the edge of the chaotic stone beach.
Due to the heavy snowfall, the ice layer was now covered with thick snow, nearly half a meter deep.
Looking at the vast, snow-white world before him, Jiang Ning couldn't help but smile.
Then, with a leap, his figure soared through the air like a great roc spreading its wings as if riding the wind.
The howling wind whistled past his ears, and the biting cold lashed at his face like knives.
Jiang Ning narrowed his eyes slightly.
Moments later.
His body descended like a feather, landing gently on the snow-covered ice.
If anyone had witnessed this scene, they would have immediately recognized the mastery of Jiang Ning's movement technique.
"A single leap, a hundred zhang!" Jiang Ning glanced back at the distance he had covered, feeling deeply satisfied.
Compared to before, his movement technique had improved significantly.
While his speed had increased by less than ten percent, the distance he could cover with a single light step now a hundred zhang was more than double what it had been.
The reason for this was that he had fully opened the great circulatory cycle of his body's meridians.
He had expanded the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and the Twelve Primary Meridians.
The expansion of these meridians allowed his internal energy to surge unimpeded, greatly improving the efficiency of its release.
With this kind of internal energy enhancement, it was only natural that his movement technique had advanced by leaps and bounds.
Next.
He closed his eyes slightly, scanning the state of his dantian.
He noticed that, compared to before, his total internal energy had visibly decreased by another noticeable fraction.
"Consumption has increased."
"But then again, with improved explosive efficiency, it's like comparing a ten-centimeter pipe to a one-meter-wide gap draining the same pool of water the time it takes to empty the pool is naturally completely different."
After confirming that about sixty percent of his internal energy remained in his dantian, Jiang Ning opened his eyes again.
In the next moment.
He took a brief moment to gather his energy.
Boom
An invisible force erupted from within him.
A shockwave expanded outward from his body, sweeping the snow around him in all directions.
The heavy snowfall, which had been drifting down steadily, suddenly reversed direction, shooting upward into the sky.
Then.
Crack
Crack
Under the pressure of his explosive energy, even the thick layer of ice beneath his feet couldn't withstand the force. Cracks began to spread rapidly across the frozen surface.
The next instant.
Boom
The ice layer shattered completely, and waves of water, along with broken ice, surged outward in all directions.
The churning waves formed towering crests over ten zhang away, reaching heights of nearly three meters before crashing heavily onto the distant ice and snow.
Now.
With the ice completely broken, Jiang Ning stood atop the azure lake water.
Yet, he didn't sink.
The unrestrained surge of his internal energy was now sufficient to support his weight, allowing him to stand effortlessly on the water's surface.
Five breaths later.
Gurgle
The explosive energy radiating from Jiang Ning suddenly vanished, and his body sank into the water.
"With sixty percent of my total internal energy, I lasted five breaths."
"That means even if I recover to a full reserve, maintaining this level of full-power internal energy explosion would only last me a little under ten breaths."
Through this experiment, Jiang Ning gained a profound understanding of the greatest limitation martial artists faced.
It was the total capacity of their internal energy.
Someone like him, with nearly thirty years of cultivated power,
could only sustain a full-power explosion for less than ten breaths.
Extrapolating from this, even reaching the "internal energy like the sea" level possessing thirty years of power would only allow one to last just over ten breaths at full output.
Going further, with sixty years of power a sexagenary cycle
one could only endure a little over twenty breaths.
This was the realm of "internal energy like the abyss," a level typically only achievable by grandmasters.
After all, a sexagenary cycle represented sixty years how many sixty-year spans did an ordinary person have in their lifetime?
Without the two-sexagenary cycle lifespan of a grandmaster, accumulating sixty years of power was nearly impossible.
As for innate talent, everyone who reached the fifth rank and condensed their internal energy had once been hailed as a prodigy.
So at this level, the gap between individuals wasn't as exaggerated as one might think.
To far surpass peers in internal energy reserves, one either needed extraordinary luck and encounters or heaven-defying talents like an immortal descending to the mortal realm or a deity walking the earth.
"Internal energy is the true limiting factor in a warrior's ability to stand alone against an army!" Jiang Ning sighed deeply.
Then, he smiled again.
Because for him, this wasn't the case.
Now submerged in water, the internal energy in his dantian began gathering like living currents. Wisps of energy, mist-like, rapidly condensed and flowed like rivers.
As long as he was in water, his internal energy was inexhaustible, endlessly replenishing itself.
His recovery efficiency was astonishingly high.
After just a dozen or so breaths.
He opened his eyes, the light in them now restrained.
Then, his figure darted upward like a fish through water.
Boom
The recently calmed lake surface erupted as a figure shot into the sky.
Then, he suddenly turned mid-air, instantly crossing several feet of water and landing on the ice nearby.
At this moment.
Spread before him was a full six feet of open water, with snow swept clean across a twenty-foot radius.
"What a world of difference!"
Gazing at the scene before him, he sighed deeply.
This spectacle was merely the result of the purest eruption of his inner energy.
Before, he could never have achieved this. Just releasing his inner energy to blow away the snow in the courtyard had been close to his limit.
But now, the full eruption of his inner energy had not only cleared the snow within a ten-foot radius around him it had also crushed the thick ice beneath. The sheer counterforce even allowed him to hover momentarily above the water.
This last point, in particular, filled him with pleasant surprise.
If his current inner energy could let him hover over water, it meant that one day, when his reserves grew even further, he might achieve true aerial suspension or even soar through the heavens.
To fly freely through the skies how many people had dreamed of such a thing?
How often had it appeared in his dreams?
Flight and earth-walking.
These were not just symbols of great power but also represented boundlessness, freedom, and unrestrained joy!
"That day will come!" he murmured, his tone resolute.
Then.
He leaped up, skimming swiftly over the snow.
In the blink of an eye, he was back in his eastern courtyard.
Swish, swish, swish
Lü Yi was sweeping the courtyard with a broom, pushing the snow toward the corner.
"Young Master!" Seeing Jiang Ning appear, she stopped and greeted him.
Spotting Lü Yi, Jiang Ning suddenly remembered that he had just used her as a test subject to experiment with the effects of the now-complemented Divine Descendant's Authority.
He beckoned to her.
"Come here!"
As he spoke.
Jiang Ning waved his hand.
His inner energy erupted like a raging storm or a surging river.
The snow in the courtyard was instantly swept clean.
"So impressive!!" Lü Yi's eyes sparkled with amazement at the sight.
Jiang Ning couldn't help but smile.
In daily life, Lü Yi was excellent at providing emotional validation.
This was one of the things he particularly liked about her.
He was already somewhat reserved by nature. If those around him were equally taciturn, wouldn't life become unbearably dull?
"Young Master!" Lü Yi set down the broom and hurried over to Jiang Ning.
"How did it feel earlier?" Jiang Ning asked.
Hearing this, Lü Yi immediately understood his meaning.
She nodded repeatedly. "Compared to last time, the effect was at least ten times stronger! I could feel my strength increase significantly, and the energy in my body grew much more abundant like I've ascended a whole tier."
"I have a feeling I'll soon complete Tempering the Skin and step into the realm of Eighth-Rank Martial Arts."
Jiang Ning looked surprised.
"Ten times stronger?"
"Yes!" Lü Yi nodded firmly.
Then she added, "Come with me, Young Master. I tested it earlier."
A moment later.
The two stood beside a stone weight.
Lü Yi now swung the 500-pound weight effortlessly, flipping it with ease.
It was quite the sight of a young woman with the strength to rival the legendary heroes of old.
Such power would have stunned people in his past life, making them question reality.
Even here, it was extraordinary.
To handle a 500-pound weight so effortlessly meant Lü Yi had to possess strength exceeding a thousand pounds.
An ordinary Ninth-Rank martial artist at their peak typically had between 700 and 1,000 pounds of strength.
Yet Lü Yi had only just begun Tempering the Skin, and her strength already far surpassed that of a typical Ninth-Rank martial artist enough to rival those at the Eighth-Rank Divine Strength realm.
Once she began dedicated strength training, it was hard to imagine how formidable her power would become.
"It seems my flesh and blood significantly enhance others' physical bodies. No wonder the Worship Sect can grow so quickly!"
"Such a straightforward method of improvement is addictive once you get used to it. The dependency would be intense."
"With the God of Flesh and Blood wielding such methods, the Worship Sect can't be underestimated."
"Given the God of Flesh and Blood's more advanced techniques and complete Authority, mass-producing martial artists probably isn't difficult for them."
In that moment, countless realizations flashed through Jiang Ning's mind.
He turned back to Lü Yi.
"These next few days, focus less on chores and more on training. Let's see how much progress you can make."
"Yes, Young Master!" Lü Yi replied.
Meanwhile.
Xie Xiaojiu had completed a round of tempering her meridians.
She threw a palm strike into the air.
Crack
The air split with a sharp sound.
Her eyes widened in astonishment.
"The improvement is this drastic?"
"Is the Master a living deity? Just his blood alone has such an astonishing effect even rare elixirs can't compare!"
At that moment, Xie Xiaojiu felt the gap between herself and Jiang Ning grow even more apparent.
The next day.
"What fine weather!"
Pushing open the door, Jiang Ning saw the clouds had parted at the horizon.
Overnight.
The heavy snow suddenly stopped, and the clouds dispersed.
It was going to be a clear day today.
Seeing the long-awaited good weather, a look of joy appeared on his face.
The arrival of sunny weather meant he was one step closer to reaching the level of "Inner Energy Like Steel."
The stronger his strength, the more composed he would be in the face of future crises.
Several hours later.
Dongling City.
"Miss Xiao, you've arrived just in time!"
Stepping out of the inn and seeing the snow-white-robed Xiao Emei appear, Bai Luoyu couldn't help but smile.
Seeing this, Xiao Emei also revealed a faint smile.
"Under my master's orders, I dare not delay."
"Miss Xiao, if you arrive in Luoshui County, how do you plan to persuade Jiang Ning to come to the Moonwater Sword Palace?" Bai Luoyu flicked open the folding fan in his hand, waving it gently in the cold morning breeze.
Normally, if ordinary people saw someone fanning themselves with a folding fan in the middle of winter, they would surely think that person was insane.
But no one would dare think that of this man.
The reason was simple.
Anyone who could wear light spring and autumn attire in the bitter cold of winter and casually fan themselves with a folding fan was no ordinary person.
Only a martial artist of extraordinary strength, one who could defy the extremes of heat and cold, could carry themselves with such ease.
Just then.
A middle-aged woman in palace attire, with crow's feet at the corners of her eyes, approached.
Seeing her, Bai Luoyu closed his folding fan and clasped his hands in salute.
"Deputy Su!"
"Patrol Envoy Bai is too polite!" The palace-attired woman smiled warmly.
Though she was the deputy chief of Dongling County's Patrol and Inspection Office, responsible for overseeing the officials, local gentry, and garrison troops of the entire county, and held a sixth-rank official position
A sixth-rank official position placed her among the highest echelons of power in the entire county.
Moreover, as a member of the Patrol and Inspection Office, she wielded special privileges, enforcing the will of the Martial Saints with the authority to act first and report later effectively outranking most officials.
Thus, within Dongling County, she stood at the very pinnacle of the hierarchy.
Coupled with her status as a fourth-rank martial artist, she had even more reason to be confident.
Yet despite all this, she still treated Bai Luoyu with courtesy.
Not because Bai Luoyu's strength surpassed hers, nor because his official rank was higher.
But because of his identity as a Patrol Envoy.
A County Patrol Envoy was responsible for inspecting an entire county, from its officials and all members of the Patrol and Inspection Office down to the common people all fell under his jurisdiction.
Though the County Patrol Envoy held only a subordinate sixth-rank position, he wielded the "Heavenly Edict," allowing him to report directly to higher authorities when necessary.
If the situation demanded it, he could summon even higher-ranking envoys.
If the Dongling County Patrol and Inspection Office was a blade hanging over the heads of everyone in the county,
Then the County Patrol Envoy was the blade hanging over the heads of the Patrol and Inspection Office itself.
Someone like Bai Luoyu, though nominally affiliated with Dongling City's Patrol and Inspection Office, also operated independently of it.
When necessary, he could move freely throughout Dongling County, acting as he saw fit.
Only a Patrol Envoy possessed such authority to travel freely across the county, intervene in any local Patrol and Inspection Office, mobilize troops, or take command of any county office's operations.
With a subordinate sixth-rank position, only the county governor outranked him in the entire county.
To such a person, even the deputy chief had to show deference.
As for officials below her, they were subject to his command.
Bai Luoyu's identity as a County Patrol Envoy, with its attendant privileges, was the reason the palace-attired woman, despite her higher official rank, treated him with such respect.
It was precisely Bai Luoyu's unique authority to move freely throughout Dongling County that had led to his assignment to Luoshui County.
Of all the people in Dongling County, the Patrol Envoys were the freest and usually the least busy.
The palace-attired woman was followed by a woman in tight-fitting martial attire, who also saluted Bai Luoyu.
"Greetings, Patrol Envoy Bai!"
The martial-clad woman clasped her hands in salute.
Bystanders on the road had already recognized her identity.
The chief inspector of the Patrol and Inspection Office, holding a seventh-rank official position.
Known by the public as the "Iron-Faced Judge."
Even within Dongling City, she was a figure of considerable influence.
"So it's Judge Zhu!"
Hearing Bai Luoyu's teasing tone, the martial-clad woman remained expressionless.
Then, Bai Luoyu turned to the two of them.
"Deputy Su, what brings you to me?"
"Jiang Ning has rendered another great service yesterday, warranting additional rewards. So I came to find you first thing in the morning fortunately, I'm not too late," the palace-attired woman with crow's feet replied.
"Another great service?" Bai Luoyu looked surprised, then continued, "This Jiang Ning is truly remarkable! Staying in a small place like Luoshui County is a waste of his talents."
"Indeed," the palace-attired woman nodded.
Then, glancing around, she added, "This isn't the place to talk. Let's go inside."
"Very well," Bai Luoyu agreed.
Meanwhile.
Xiao Emei had already quietly stepped aside.
As the head disciple of the Moonwater Sword Palace, ranked third on the Hidden Dragon List's Human Ranking, and a strong contender for the next palace master, she carried many prestigious titles.
But in front of this palace-attired woman, none of that mattered.
A fourth-rank martial artist and deputy chief of the Patrol and Inspection Office stood before her like an insurmountable mountain.
She wasn't even qualified to speak to her.
Unless her master came with the title of "First Under the Grandmaster in Dongling County" would she barely qualify.
But even then, she wouldn't dare provoke the currently flourishing and powerful Patrol and Inspection Office.
Because the chief of Dongling City's Patrol and Inspection Office was a grandmaster one of only two in the entire county.
If he took action, he could overturn the Moonwater Sword Palace and relegate it to history.
"Jiang Ning has rendered another great service… Master has truly given me an impossible task."
Recalling the orders given to her by the Moonwater Sword Palace's master,
Xiao Emei felt a headache coming on.
"Ensure he is invited to the Moonwater Sword Palace as a guest."
"If necessary, use force to compel him."
"Will using force work?" she murmured under her breath, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible, her expression filled with doubt.
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