Chu Qingyun opened the package and saw thirteen pigeon-egg-sized, pale gray stones inside.
Primordial Stones are an indispensable resource for a Martial Artist's cultivation.
At the same time, they are also a hard currency among Martial Artists and can be used as money.
Primordial Stones are divided into four grades. These pale gray ones were merely the lowest, Lower Grade Primordial Stones.
Chu Xuan and Liu Lanfang went out. Chu Qingyun, meanwhile, returned to his room, sat cross-legged, and began to cultivate, holding a Primordial Stone.
The Martial Disciple Ninth Layer is a process of tempering the body, honing it until it is strong enough to withstand the power of a Martial Soul.
Cultivation in the Martial Artist Realm, however, involves Refining and accumulating Primordial Power. This Primordial Power is then used to drive the Martial Soul and unleash its abilities.
The method for cultivating in the Martial Artist Realm is simple; almost everyone knows it.
It involves absorbing the Primordial Power from Primordial Stones to open the meridians within the body.
The Martial Artist Ninth Layer corresponds to nine minor realms, one for each opened meridian.
Once all nine meridians are opened, they converge in the Dantian, opening a Qi Sea. Then, one can become a powerful Martial Artist!
'A powerful Martial Artist... Even the village chief hasn't opened his Qi Sea. I should keep my feet on the ground and focus on becoming a Martial Artist first.'
Chu Qingyun held a Primordial Stone in each hand, absorbing the Primordial Power within them to assault the first meridian.
Forcibly opening a meridian was accompanied by intense pain, causing Chu Qingyun to hiss involuntarily.
But he gritted his teeth and persevered, not daring to let his focus waver for even a moment.
Only after losing something do you learn to cherish it.
Chu Qingyun's Martial Soul had been hard-won through a difficult journey, so he treasured this chance to cultivate.
After a full hour of assault, Chu Qingyun had consumed ten Lower Grade Primordial Stones and finally, completely opened his first meridian.
Once the meridian was open, the pain instantly vanished. In its place, a cool stream of energy circulated through his body, and a feeling of immense comfort spread throughout him.
"First-level Martial Artist!"
Chu Qingyun's eyes snapped open, a sharp glint of light flashing within them before slowly receding.
He had consumed ten Primordial Stones, and now, he was a true Martial Artist!
'Not so fast. I need to stabilize my meridians.'
Though the meridian was open, Chu Qingyun didn't end his cultivation. Instead, he absorbed the power from the remaining three Primordial Stones to stabilize his new Realm.
When he finished cultivating, he could feel the ceaseless flow of Primordial Power in his meridians, and a sense of being filled with strength washed over him.
'Time to test the power of a true Martial Artist…'
Chu Qingyun paced around the courtyard until his eyes landed on a discarded stone roller.
He grabbed both ends of the roller, and with a sudden exertion of strength in his arms, he easily lifted it as if it weighed nothing, even hoisting it above his head.
'This stone roller must weigh at least four or five hundred pounds.'
'Back at the Martial Disciple Ninth Layer, it was a struggle just to hug-lift it. Now I can actually raise it over my head!'
His face was filled with pleasant surprise.
Breaking through to a first-level Martial Artist had more than doubled his strength!
This was the difference between a Martial Artist on the path of the Martial Dao and an ordinary person!
Gently setting down the stone roller, Chu Qingyun summoned his Three-star Vine Martial Soul. 'Every Martial Soul has Soul Techniques. Let's see what the Three-Star Vine's are…'
Every Martial Soul possessed an innate Soul Technique.
The fighting styles of Martial Artists who possessed Martial Souls were also designed around their own Soul Techniques.
Walking into the courtyard, Chu Qingyun released his Three-star Vine Martial Soul, focusing his concentration to communicate with it.
Soon, he learned of this Martial Soul's Soul Technique.
Passive Skill: Tenacity.
With this skill, the vines of his Three-Star Vine would become exceptionally tough.
Chu Qingyun and the other youths had all heard the village chief lecture on the lore of Martial Souls before.
The types of Martial Souls were innumerable, impossible to count, but their functions could be roughly divided into four categories.
Assault-type.
Control-type.
Defense-type.
Support-type.
'A Three-star Vine Martial Soul, combined with the skill Tenacity... My Martial Soul must be a control-type.'
Chu Qingyun quickly came to this understanding.
He began to test his Martial Soul, injecting Primordial Power into the illusory Three-Star Vine in his hand. Three dark green vines began to grow and expand.
Finally, they stopped, fixed at a length of five meters.
'Wow, so strong! They actually grew to five meters!'
Chu Qingyun was thrilled. Wielding the power of his Martial Soul for the first time felt incredibly novel.
"Bind that tree!"
Chu Qingyun issued the command, but the three vines remained limp and motionless.
'Uh, I guess that's not how it works…'
After pondering for a moment, Chu Qingyun discovered the secret of his Martial Soul.
These three vines had no sentience of their own; they were like three new arms that had sprouted from his body, which he needed to control himself.
It was like learning to walk all over again. At first, Chu Qingyun found it extremely strenuous; even moving the vines slightly was incredibly difficult.
However, Chu Qingyun's rate of progress was also extremely fast.
By the time Chu Xuan and Liu Lanfang returned home around noon, Chu Qingyun could already control the three vines of his Three-Star Vine as if they were his own arms.
'Strange... The village chief said that using the power of a Martial Soul is a very difficult thing, but why do I feel like it's not hard at all…'
Chu Qingyun felt a bit puzzled.
But he soon put these thoughts aside. Easy control was hardly a bad thing.
What Chu Qingyun didn't know was that because this Three-Star Vine had been re-condensed after being swallowed by the Devouring Martial Soul,
It was as if it had been tailor-made for him, naturally possessing an extremely high degree of compatibility and affinity, making it very easy to master.
After lunch and a short rest, Chu Qingyun began to study that sword technique.
In Chu Qingyun's home, there was a Refined Iron Longsword. It had also been his favorite toy ever since he was a child.
But now that he had become a first-level Martial Artist and possessed the Gale Seven Swords Secret Manual, he understood.
This sword was no longer a toy.
'A sword is a tool for killing!'
"Gale Seven Swords, First Sword: Spring Rain!"
As he injected Primordial Power, the Longsword lit up with a faint glow.
A sharp aura also emanated from Chu Qingyun, making him seem like an unsheathed Treasure Sword, his edge fully revealed!
The first sword, Spring Rain, consisted of more than ten Sword Techniques.
At first, Chu Qingyun could only mechanically perform the movements as recorded in the Secret Manual.
But with each repetition, his movements grew more practiced, and the speed of his strikes increased.
Eventually, he could execute all the Sword Techniques effortlessly, with complete familiarity.
Moreover, Chu Qingyun's movements became like phantoms; his dodges and advances were impossible to follow.
By spending the whole afternoon, Chu Qingyun had become proficient in the first four swords, transitioning between each technique as smoothly as flowing water.
He withdrew his sword and stood still, a frown creasing his brow.
He had a nagging feeling that although he was proficient with this Sword Technique, he had yet to grasp its most crucial element.
'What exactly am I missing?' Chu Qingyun thought, his brow deeply furrowed.
At that moment, a gentle breeze swept by.
The early spring wind, though still a bit cool, was already gentle as it softly caressed Chu Qingyun's face.
'The wind!'
'It's the wind!'
'I understand now! What I'm missing is a certain essence, the essence of the wind!'
'The spring wind is mild.'
'The summer wind is wild.'
'The autumn wind is desolate.'
'The winter wind is biting.'
Having realized this, a bright light shone in Chu Qingyun's eyes.
When he once again performed the first four swords of the Gale Seven Swords, his movements were no longer a mechanical replication of the Secret Manual.
He became like the winds of the four seasons, at times mild, at times biting. Sharp Sword Auras left a crisscrossing pattern of cuts upon the ground.
"Autumn Wind Sweeps the Leaves!"
With all his Sword Momentum accumulated to its peak, Chu Qingyun suddenly let out a low roar and swept his sword horizontally.
A crescent-shaped, sharp Sword Aura struck the discarded stone roller, shattering it into dust and sending a cloud of debris into the air.
In a single afternoon, he had mastered the first four swords of the Gale Seven Swords.
Such speed would likely shock many if they heard of it.
But Chu Qingyun was not satisfied and continued to study the fifth sword, "Dawn Wind and Waning Moon."