For Martial Artists from Tier 1 to Tier 3, the primary focus of cultivation is the tendons and bones.
When the limbs or torso turn golden, it signifies the perfection of Tier 1.
Stepping into Tier 2 marks the beginning of cultivating the remaining parts.
Once the entire skeleton turns golden and one enters Tier 3, the focus shifts to cultivating the internal organs.
When the whole body steps into a new realm, it means completely shaking off the mortal coil and entering the transcendent domain.
Lifespan will also double.
Full ten-plus minutes passed before Su Yang's surging Qi and blood finally calmed down.
Lowering his head, he saw that his skin was covered in grime, accompanied by a nauseating, foul odor.
"These are the impurities from within the limbs."
Su Yang muttered to himself and hurriedly went to wash up.
After the bath, he felt completely refreshed. His consciousness sank once more into his Consciousness Sea.
Within the Consciousness Sea, that mysterious place seemed to have grown a bit larger.
Su Yang felt somewhat puzzled. Could it be that every time he advanced a tier, this plot of land would expand? And land that could serve as a foundation for a Qilin probably wasn't so simple.
Unfortunately, he searched the entire Consciousness Sea and found no information whatsoever about this patch of land, so he could only temporarily suppress this doubt.
Meanwhile, in the newly added open space, a fiery-red Qilin raised its head and roared. Upon seeing Su Yang, it immediately became docile and wagged its tail.
"Master, Master, you're finally here. Xiaohuo missed you to death! Master, shall we go out for a spin?"
Su Yang was astonished. This fellow could actually communicate with him through telepathy, making it much stronger than the Jade Qilin.
"Master, I couldn't communicate with you before because you were too weak, alright?"
As soon as Su Yang's thought arose, another aggrieved-sounding voice suddenly rang in his mind.
This made him somewhat awkward. It seemed that in the future, not only could he not speak them aloud, but even when thinking, he had to be extremely careful.
Su Yang placated the Jade Qilin, then turned and used telepathy to speak to the Fire Qilin:
"Xiaohuo, do you mean that I can summon you out?"
"Of course! Master, you can give it a try."
Su Yang immediately moved his mind, and a ball of fire abruptly appeared in his hand.
The fire looked very ordinary, but the feeling it gave him was terrifying, as if he were not looking at a ball of fire, but an ancient ferocious beast.
"This..."
While Su Yang was still hesitating, he heard the Fire Qilin say: "Master, my realm is too low right now, so I can't maintain my true form yet, but I'm very strong, you know."
"Once I reach Tier 2, I'll be able to appear in a lower-tier form."
Su Yang nodded and, with a thought, pulled the Fire Qilin back into the Consciousness Sea.
His gaze fell upon the Fire Qilin, and a status window automatically floated into view.
Current Natal Spirit Beast: Fire Qilin (Origin Grade)
Realm: Tier 1
Talent: Flame, Energy Rebound
Functions: Fire Form Attack, Fire Burst, Iron Tree in Silver Bloom...
Advancement Progress: 0/1000
Fan Count: 0
Description: The Fire Qilin can raise its realm by relying on objects containing spiritual energy. As its realm increases, its flame form will also evolve.
Flame attacks? Su Yang glanced around the cultivation room but found no suitable targets, so he could only suppress the stirring in his heart and prepare to go out of the city tomorrow to test it out.
Then, he opened his main status window.
Name: Su Yang
Cultivation: Tier 1, Level 3
Qi and Blood Value: 152/500 (Allocatable)
Talents: S-Grade Animal Husbandry, SSS-Grade Chaos Force (Upgradeable 0/), SSS-Grade Nine Heavens Demonic Fire (Upgradeable 0/)
Martial Skills: Mountain-Splitting Fist (Novice) (Upgradeable 0/1000)
Fire Dance Silver Snake (Novice) (Upgradeable 0/1000)
Chasing Wind Saber Technique (Unranked) (Perfection) (Upgradeable 0/500)
Cloud Rolling Thousand Illusions Art (Earth Grade Fragmentary Version) (Uninitiated) (Derivable)
Rebound Points: 203
Seeing this, Su Yang's heart trembled. The fragmentary version he had casually bought was actually an Earth-grade martial skill?
Although it was a fragmentary version, the three words "Derivable" following it gave him absolute confidence.
An Earth-grade martial skill could no longer be measured by money in the market; it could entirely become the foundational heritage passed down by a provincial-level major family.
As long as it was derivable, no matter how many rebound points it cost, it would be entirely worth it.
At this thought, Su Yang directly went all-in with all his rebound points.
The Cloud Rolling Thousand Illusions Art, which he had previously been completely unable to understand, suddenly generated a vague sensation in his mind.
The feeling was wondrous; he seemed to have comprehended a trace of it, yet that trace felt somewhat illusory—he wanted to grasp it, but could never quite catch it.
Su Yang sighed. As expected, those few rebound points simply couldn't derive anything of value.
Yet he was not discouraged either. The appearance of that sensation in his mind indicated that he was not far from mastering the basics.
"It seems my next step is to head out of the city to hunt monster beasts."
Hunting monster beasts would not only yield monster beast materials to exchange for Xiaxia currency, but also help the Jade Qilin and Fire Qilin level up.
It could truly be described as killing multiple birds with one stone.
......
Inside the hospital.
Han Shatian and Li Kui were both assigned to the same hospital room where Li Tianpao was staying.
The three of them hung their heads in dejection, not daring to meet the gaze of the person standing before them.
Liu Chaofeng wore white from head to toe, immaculate and spotless.
He frowned as he looked at the three men on the hospital beds.
"Brother Feng, if we let Su Yang mess around like this, our school team is completely finished."
"He abuses prohibited drugs, uses despicable methods, and is overbearing."
"Brother Feng, the reputation you worked so hard to build must never be ruined in his hands."
Li Tianpao looked at the youth before him with an aggrieved expression.
"Enough, stop plotting behind the scenes."
"Focus on recovering from your injuries. Su Yang is a school team member specially approved by the vice-principal; there's nothing I can do."
"Besides, how did the two of them get injured?"
"Don't think I don't know."
Hearing this, neither Han Shatian nor Li Kui dared to answer. Thinking back to the scene at that time, it was somewhat humiliating.
"Alright, I'll have Xueer notify him and make him apologize to you. We'll leave it at that for now. If you have the ability, win back your dignity yourselves."
Seeing that Liu Chaofeng was unwilling to step in, Li Tianpao felt somewhat annoyed, though he didn't dare show the slightest bit of it on his face.
Their team captain was a genuine Martial Artist with the strength of Tier 1, Level 5.
He was simply a bit too arrogant.
People, once they become too arrogant, stop thinking flexibly and always feel that they are the most correct ones.
As he spoke, Liu Chaofeng took out his phone and made a call.
"Xueer, how is it? When is he coming?"
.....
Whatever was said on the other end of the line caused Liu Chaofeng's expression to sink slightly.
"That's true. As the captain, I suppose I should call him myself to ask."
Although Li Tianpao and the others didn't know what Lou Xueer had said over the phone, they certainly possessed the ability to read facial expressions.
Seeing the serious look on Liu Chaofeng's face, they knew he was angry.
Making Brother Feng—who had severe spiritual cleanliness—angry would lead to unimaginable consequences.
Li Tianpao and Han Shatian exchanged glances and nodded imperceptibly.
"Brother Feng, actually, there was another reason why Li Yang and I made a move."
"It's... it's..."
Han Shatian hesitated, stuttering, until he saw the displeasure on Liu Chaofeng's face grow even more pronounced. Only then did he say helplessly:
"It's just that we felt Senior Sister Xueer's gaze toward that guy Su Yang was a bit strange."
"You don't mean to suggest Xueer could possibly fancy that Su Yang, do you?"
"Han Shatian, you'd better not play tricks in front of me."
"Otherwise, you'll be taking the Martial Arts Examination from a hospital bed."
Han Shatian swore to the heavens.
"Brother Feng, I'm definitely not lying. Li Yang can vouch for it."
Seeing this, Li Yang opened his mouth to express his stance, only to see Liu Chaofeng wave a hand.
"Enough. That's their personal business and has nothing to do with you."
"I'll have Su Yang come and apologize to you."
With those words, Liu Chaofeng directly dialed Su Yang's number.