Chaotic World Book
Chapter 337 - 330: Mystical Gate Ninth Layer

Chapter 337: Chapter 330: Mystical Gate Ninth Layer

"How long have you been holding that in..." Huangfu Qing wiped her hands, a mix of disgust and sighs evident in her demeanor.

Zhao Changhe watched her wipe her hands with longing eyes, his heart aching with the thought that the Beauty Liquid meant for the blind was now gone.

Actually, it wasn’t held in for very long... it wasn’t about holding it in, the effect of the medicine was just too fierce.

If one were earnest about cultivation, one shouldn’t be doing these destructive things at such a time; one should be meditating to digest the gains properly.

Of course, he dared not say this aloud, for fear of being beaten to death by his miss.

As a result, Huangfu Qing herself lazily moved to one side, "I’m going to enter meditation and solidify my gains. Don’t always have such filthy thoughts. Concentrate on cultivating properly and see if you can use this opportunity to break through to the Secret Realm."

Zhao Changhe said, "When you were depleted and rejuvenated just now, it must have been the result of a Secret Realm Breakthrough, right? Otherwise, I can’t imagine that state."

Huangfu Qing felt like laughing, "Yes, it was."

It was a breakthrough to the Secret Realm, specifically the Third Layer Secret Treasure.

Tang Wanzhuang made a breakthrough to the Third Layer Secret Treasure and turned into a sickly person, but I did it without incident. This time, I truly surpassed her.

Well, it just involved kissing a man...

Zhao Changhe felt envious, "One after another making breakthroughs to the Secret Realm, I need to put in more effort."

Huangfu Qing was in a very good mood and laughed, "It’s okay, being a little weak is also quite cute."

Zhao Changhe, "?"

"Cough." Afraid that he might pounce on her to prove how not weak he was, Huangfu Qing quickly said with a chuckle, "You’re already progressing very quickly, achieving the Mystical Gate Ninth Layer in such a short time is unprecedented. As for the Secret Realm, you can’t rush it. First, you need to reach the Unification of Inner and External... Eh?"

She took a look at Zhao Changhe, and a trace of surprise flickered in her eyes, "You... you’ve broken through to the Inner Ninth Layer, too?"

Her thoughts were all on his vigorous physique, thinking he only achieved the External Skill Ninth Layer by leveraging the effects of the medicinal Body Refining, without noticing that his Inner Mystical Gate had also broken through to the Ninth Layer.

How did he break through to Inner? The things just now barely related to cultivating Inner True Energy at all, just relying on that little bit of Dual Cultivation exchange?

"No, this is a false Ninth Layer, energy too fierce caused it to break through just now, in reality, there is none of the comprehension or experience that Mystical Gate Ninth Layer should have," said Huangfu Qing, her expression turning serious, "You must immediately enter meditation to perceive the cosmic self that is linked to heaven above and earth below. Otherwise, if you miss this, the door to the Secret Realm will be closed forever and you will deeply regret it."

The key point to breaking through to the Inner Ninth Layer Mystical Gate is the Heavenly Spirit, which connects to the Heaven and Earth Bridge, and opens up the Secret Treasure. This is a very dangerous threshold, and breaking through forcibly can easily result in idiocy. That is why modern people foolishly simplify this step, not bearing the connection to the Heaven and Earth Bridge, treating it purely as an internal cultivation step, which leads to eruptive power at Ninth Layer but very few can actually break through to the Secret Realm.

Zhao Changhe certainly would not simplify it in this way. Despite his fast progress, his approach was very proper. The refinement of his Five Senses and Perception had long surpassed most of the Ninth Layer powerhouses. One could say that his trip to Kunlun for cultivation was not aimed at the Ninth Layer, but directly at the Secret Realm, in search of a Grandmaster’s journey.

But this time, the energy was too strong, and it directly broke the barrier, inadvertently following the simplified path others took. Where is the significance of the Mystical Gate Ninth Layer initiating the Secret Realm? There was absolutely no comprehension.

He didn’t even experience the challenge of impacting the Heavenly Spirit, which could mean that this particular Mystical Gate wasn’t truly opened. It was a mere half-baked Ninth Layer.

Well, it’s not without benefits; at least now he knew what other people’s so-called Ninth Layers were like. Apart from being a bit stronger than the Eighth Layer, what other difference was there? With such a state, breaking through to the Secret Realm was nonsense.

Zhao Changhe quietly sat down cross-legged, trying to perceive the true Ninth Mystical Gate, but for a while, he couldn’t grasp it.

Huangfu Qing touched his forehead lightly with a finger, helping him calm down, "This gate is only an initiation, it’s not as difficult as people imagine. The core secret is to not treat it as a breakthrough of a personal gate, but as a bridge. Why not think about it, the Star Map that I... the Vermilion Bird Venerable pointed out to you earlier, stars in the sky corresponding to yourself. How do they resonate? When you find that, it will be your Martial Arts path. Each person’s Martial Arts path contains his own Essence, Qi, and Spirit. Think about what your Martial Arts path is?"

Her voice gradually grew distant as Zhao Changhe entered the state of Meditation.

Huangfu Qing looked at him for a while, her eyes reflecting a hint of complexity.

The origin of that Star Map... how could she have imagined back then that she would truly come to like this young man?

Now, what the Star Map symbolizes is no longer important. However, Huangfu Qing still believed that it would be best to be able to fit into the teachings of the Four Symbols Sect; she wondered if that could be achieved.

She, too, sat down cross-legged nearby, seeking to perceive the Fire Heart that had just entered her Spirit Platform.

With such control over Fire, it could stir the heart’s demons, igniting flames within; in fact, it could already be considered possessing God Demon abilities. Yet at a time like this, she didn’t feel as close to reaching the limit as before; rather, it felt like unlocking a key, revealing more expansive paths above, marking just the beginning.

If his First Secret Treasure was about initiation... after all, isn’t the Third Secret Treasure the same?

Merely initiation on different levels.

...

At this moment, Zhao Changhe’s consciousness had fully entered the perception of his body’s meridians and acupoints.

When the Mystical Gate reaches the Heavenly Spirit, a complete cycle has already formed within the body. In traditional martial arts concepts, this is known as the governor and conception vessels completely permeating, a cosmos onto itself.

His Cultivation truly entered the realm of mastery at this point, marking the Mystical Gate Ninth Layer, the pinnacle for ordinary martial artists.

But this was merely the inner cycle, a half-baked Ninth Layer.

How to establish the external bridge? How to achieve an endless flow both internally and externally?

When he sat cross-legged, with his perineum above the ground and his Heavenly Spirit against the sky, theoretically, he had constructed the Heaven and Earth Bridge. But how to connect it through?

Surely, one could not haphazardly channel True Qi, causing one’s Heavenly Spirit cover to be blown off. That was not the way to do it.

Ordinary martial artists faced with such a situation would indeed be at their wit’s end, but Zhao Changhe, under the guidance of Yue Hongling since the Mystical Gate Eighth Layer, had been refining his spirit and training his Five Senses. He was already very experienced in spiritual visualization.

With a hint from Huangfu Qing, he quickly initiated the visualization of the Celestial Star Map.

The stars above are the external constellations, while the acupoints are the internal stars. The two can resonate... like how every cultivator in the Four Symbols Sect relates themselves to the imagery of the Four Symbols Stars and cultivate attributes corresponding to the Four Symbols. Is that a coincidence?

There is a correlation between the internal and external stars; humans and the cosmos are one.

The Vermilion Bird and the Xuanwu, they forge their own Star Maps, follow the corresponding intention, and that is their resonance, as well as their martial essence and spirit. I am the Vermilion Bird, I am the Xuanwu, and thus the unity of heaven and man is achieved.

But what about Zhao Changhe?

What is my martial essence and spirit?

Is it the sunset glow, vast and distant?

Is it a sword and wine, a lonely journey through the Worldly Society?

Is it the clear ripples of green water, the melodious sound of the qin?

Or is it when blood-thirsty energy rises, and armies yield with ease?

Actually, none of these... those are just external manifestations.

When his mouth speaks fewer and fewer coarse Zhao Mansion dialects and vulgar words, and his detached and indifferent stance dwindles, and even the desire to seek the Demoness is nearly forgotten beyond the clouds, his life merges with the joys and sorrows of the world.

It’s about fighting injustice with the sword, traversing thousands of miles in battle, toasting defiantly to lords and princes, and honoring promises like gold.

The blind man said, "You are now a person of this world..."

Is that so? Perhaps yes, perhaps no.

Regardless of which world one belongs to, one should simply do what needs to be done.

Zhao Changhe gazed at the myriad stars in the sky, but not one matched his intention.

The blind man also said that the Heavenly Dao was dead.

If the heavens have no Dao, which star could possibly resonate?

None of the celestial stars.

What about Emperor Ye... without even sun and moon, what makes one an emperor of the night?

If there were no sun and moon... I would be the sun and moon illuminating the rivers and mountains.

If the heavens lack Dao, I shall follow my own! Was this not the ambition I set at Beimang?

The entire Star Map shimmered to life, deploying the method of the stars resonating as taught by the Vermilion Bird, awakening the Heavenly Spirit like stars encircling the moon.

The vortex at the Dantian wildly spun, the Unification of Six Harmonies, like the high-hanging sun.

Sun and moon reflected each other, heaven and earth shone together.

A trickle of cool relief quietly seeped into the Heavenly Spirit, the bridge silently connected through—unity inside and out, heaven and man as one.

At this point, the Mystical Gate Ninth Layer reached Great Success.

Zhao Changhe, feeling the transition of the True Qi within his body from acquired to innate, slowly opened his eyes.

In front of him was Huangfu Qing with a complicated expression: "You... are you really not Emperor Ye?"

Zhao Changhe beamed with a radiant smile: "I truly am not."