Night had already fallen over the inner courtyard.
The cold wind outside carried traces of winter frost, brushing softly against the tiled rooftops of the training centre. Dim lanterns hung beneath the corridors, their yellow glow illuminating the pathways between rooms.
Inside his residence, Lin Sheng sat cross legged on the meditation cushion.
The room was quiet.
Completely quiet.
Only the faint sound of his breathing could be heard.
Before him rested a thin manual bound in dark cloth.
The Basic Breathing Exercise.
A cultivation method distributed to every martial trainee in the Lin Training Centre.
Lin Sheng slowly flipped through the pages.
The contents were not complicated.
Compared to the visualization methods from his previous world or the profound martial knowledge taught by Old Liang, this breathing exercise was extremely crude.
Yet even crude methods had value.
Especially for beginners.
The manual described the process of sensing Qi Blood, using breathing patterns to guide it, and finally condensing internal energy within the lower dantian.
Only after generating a strand of internal energy and successfully guiding it around the lower dantian could one be considered to have reached Major Achievement in the introductory phase.
Lin Sheng closed the manual.
The medicinal warmth from the Essence Nourishing Soup still lingered within his body.
His blood flow was noticeably more active than usual.
At least seventy percent stronger than normal according to the chip's earlier calculations.
Combined with the rich spiritual energy of Cloud Mist Market, his current environment was far superior to the Lin Family's mortal city.
Even ordinary breathing here nourished the body.
Though for people without spiritual roots, most of the spiritual qi absorbed naturally would eventually dissipate from the body.
Without cultivation methods, they could not retain it.
Lin Sheng's eyes narrowed slightly.
"But martial artists are different…"
Martial artists refined the body itself into a vessel.
Instead of spiritual roots acting as a bridge between man and heaven, martial artists used Qi Blood, meridians, and acupoints to establish that connection manually.
A rougher path.
A more dangerous path.
But still a path.
"Chip."
His voice sounded softly inside the room.
"Input and optimize the breathing exercise."
Immediately the familiar interface appeared before his eyes.
•[Task 1: Optimization of Breathing Exercise]•
•[Estimated Process Time: 4 hours]•
•[Power Usage: Low]•
Lin Sheng frowned slightly.
Four hours was too long.
The medicinal effect of the Essence Nourishing Soup would weaken considerably by then.
He thought briefly before speaking again.
"Increase power usage by one level."
The interface flickered.
•[Power Usage: Mid]•
•[Estimated Process Time: 20 minutes]•
Lin Sheng raised an eyebrow.
"From four hours to twenty minutes…"
That improvement was absurd.
The chip truly became terrifying once enough mental strength was supplied to it.
But almost immediately after the adjustment, Lin Sheng felt a noticeable drop in his mental reserves.
A slight dizziness emerged within his sea of consciousness.
"…Or maybe not too often."
He rubbed his forehead lightly.
Increasing power usage clearly increased the burden placed on his mind.
At his current level, using high output continuously would probably damage him eventually.
Maybe after reaching Mid Stage Entering Samadhi things would improve.
For now, moderation was necessary.
The room fell silent again.
Twenty minutes passed quickly.
Then the interface appeared once more.
•[Optimization Complete]•
•[Inputting revised breathing exercise into memory]•
A wave of information surged into his mind.
Lin Sheng inhaled sharply.
Even after adapting to the chip for years, forcibly receiving information still felt uncomfortable.
Thankfully the strain only lasted a few moments.
He closed his eyes and began organizing the new information.
The optimized exercise was significantly more efficient.
The original breathing method simply guided the body's natural absorption process.
But the chip's revised version adjusted breathing frequency, pause duration, lung expansion, heartbeat rhythm, and even blood circulation timing.
Its goal was simple.
Maximize the retention of dissipating spiritual qi.
Lin Sheng slowly exhaled.
"With this…"
"…I should be able to generate internal energy tonight."
His posture straightened.
His breathing gradually slowed.
Then changed.
Inhale.
Pause.
Exhale.
Pause.
Each breath followed an extremely precise rhythm.
The medicinal energy from the Essence Nourishing Soup immediately reacted.
Warmth spread through his limbs.
His Qi Blood began circulating faster.
At the same time, traces of spiritual qi drifting through the room were naturally drawn toward him through each breath.
The sensing process was surprisingly easy.
For ordinary trainees, sensing internal changes required time and repeated practice.
But Lin Sheng possessed something they did not.
Mental introspection.
His mental power flowed inward naturally.
He could literally observe the movement of energy inside his own body.
Blood.
Organs.
Heat.
Breathing.
Everything became visible within his perception.
As the Qi Blood circulated, it gradually gathered near his chest.
Then—
The chip sounded abruptly.
•[Increased activity detected in heart: 40% increase]•
•[Shock therapy advised]•
Lin Sheng's expression twitched.
His heartbeat exploded violently.
Thump!
Thump!
Thump!
It felt as though his heart wanted to burst out of his chest.
Pain spread briefly through his veins.
Then—
The intense heartbeat suddenly stabilized.
What emerged from the heart afterward felt completely different.
Denser.
Hotter.
More refined.
His eyes widened slightly.
"The heart refined the Qi Blood…"
The refined Qi Blood continued flowing through his body.
It passed his organs.
His veins.
His muscles.
Finally arriving three inches below his navel.
The lower dantian.
At first, the refined energy merely lingered there.
Thin.
Weak.
Unstable.
It looked like it might scatter at any moment.
But then more refined Qi Blood arrived continuously.
The energy slowly gathered together.
Compressed.
Merged.
Gradually transforming.
Then—
A faint mist like strand finally appeared.
Transparent.
Almost illusory.
Yet undeniably real.
Lin Sheng stared inwardly at the strand floating within his lower dantian.
"…So this is internal energy."
At the same moment, the chip responded.
•[Unknown Energy Detected]•
•[Energy Type Estimated: Beneficial]•
•[Does host wish to eject foreign energy?]•
Lin Sheng nearly laughed.
"No."
"Classify it as Internal Energy."
"Store under file name: Martial Dao."
•[Updating File…]•
•[Process Complete]•
Lin Sheng exhaled slowly.
Success.
True success.
After months of preparation…
Visualization.
Opening Apertures.
Mental cultivation.
Learning martial theory.
He had finally stepped onto the true path of martial cultivation.
Even if it was only a single strand.
The significance was enormous.
He slowly opened his eyes.
The room appeared clearer than before.
His senses sharper.
Even his breathing felt more alive.
His body had changed subtly.
Martial cultivation truly began only after generating internal energy.
Before that, one was merely training the body.
Now he had crossed the threshold.
Lin Sheng lowered his gaze thoughtfully.
"The next step…"
"…is accumulation."
According to Mentor Gu, one needed roughly thirty years worth of internal energy before attempting meridian opening.
Of course, "thirty years" was merely a measurement standard.
It referred to the amount an average martial artist in an ordinary mortal city could accumulate over thirty years.
In a cultivation market like Cloud Mist Market, the process became much faster due to spiritual qi density.
For someone with average talent, it might take around thirty days.
For someone with excellent root bone and access to Essence Nourishing Soup—
Around one week.
Lin Sheng's eyes flickered slightly.
"Chip."
"Calculate estimated time required to reach thirty years worth of internal energy."
The interface appeared quickly.
•[Calculating…]•
•[Estimated Time Required: 3 Days]•
Silence filled the room.
Even Lin Sheng was genuinely shocked this time.
"…Three days?"
That was absurd.
An excellent root bone genius with proper resources would normally require around a week.
Yet he only needed three days.
His mental introspection alone already gave him a massive advantage.
Combined with the optimized breathing exercise and his enhanced comprehension from Entering Samadhi…
The result became terrifying.
But Lin Sheng quickly calmed himself.
Fast cultivation was not always beneficial.
Especially here.
If he advanced too quickly, suspicion would naturally arise.
He could not expose himself recklessly.
Not yet.
The elders might not be able to accurately determine the total amount of internal energy within someone unless they inspected the dantian personally.
But cultivating too quickly would still attract attention.
Lin Sheng tapped his fingers lightly against his knee.
"…Then I'll slow it down slightly."
Tomorrow he would only reveal that he successfully sensed and generated internal energy.
That alone would already place him among the better trainees.
After that, he could gradually reveal progress over the next few days.
Slow enough to appear reasonable.
Fast enough to maintain his status.
The safest approach.
Lin Sheng relaxed slightly.
The first step had finally been completed.
His gaze drifted toward the window.
Outside, snowflakes had begun falling quietly over Cloud Mist Market.
The world beyond the glass looked calm.
Peaceful even.
But Lin Sheng knew better.
This world was anything but peaceful.
The Lin Family still tries to prevent outside region cultivators and internal demonic cultivators from destroying the provinces they govern.
Every path toward strength was paved with danger.
Even now, despite his advantages, he was still weak.
Far too weak. He still hasn't learned to use his mental energy for attack. Maybe it's time to start researching under that.
It all comes down to strength
He needed strength.
Enough to protect himself.
Enough to stand beside his sister one day rather than remain protected behind her shadow.
Lin Sheng slowly clenched his fist. Before he could unleash a stance...
The chip suddenly sounded again.
•[Warning]•
•[Detected external observation attempt near residence perimeter]•
Lin Sheng's eyes snapped open instantly.
His expression turned cold.
Someone was watching the inner courtyard.