Heavenly Dao Engine
Chapter 213 - 213 197 This Time Should Be No Exception_2

Chapter 213: Chapter 197: This Time Should Be No Exception_2 Chapter 213: Chapter 197: This Time Should Be No Exception_2 Although Qi Tian did not buy any elixirs, he had over five thousand middle-grade spirit stones that could be used for cultivation and to open up his meridians. Using spirit stones was considered extravagant, and not many could afford this luxury in the Imperial Master Mansion. Moreover, the efficiency of absorption is much lower than that of elixirs, leading to serious waste. However, Qi Tian did not mind this. As long as he could achieve a breakthrough sooner rather than later, waste was acceptable. More importantly, his cultivation was assisted by the Heavenly Dao Engine, which significantly reduced wastage. Even the Spirit Qi that could not be absorbed by him and was about to disperse into the surroundings would be swept away by the Heavenly Dao Engine, serving as its fuel.

In a blink of an eye, ten days had passed and Qi Tian’s cultivation had reached a very crucial moment. He had successfully opened his thirty-sixth meridian. According to the popular terminology of cultivators, he had reached the Qi Cultivation Peak and could consider advancing to the Half-step Foundation, one step away from the Foundation Establishment Stage. Yet, Qi Tian still felt a sense of incompletion, as he believed he could open up even more meridians.

Thus, he recalled the theories of the meridians in Traditional Chinese Medicine he had seen in his past life, selected four of them, and decided to continue his attempt to open up these four.

Initially, Qi Tian was somewhat worried. After all, the Black Jade Skills he was cultivating did not include these four meridians, so he might not be able to reach the tenth level of Qi Cultivation. However, to his surprise, the process went smoothly as he used Spirit Qi from the middle-grade spirit stones at triple speed to clash against the meridians. Eventually, he successfully opened up the thirty-seventh meridian…

In the blink of an eye, four more days had passed and Qi Tian had opened up four more meridians, bringing the astonishing total to forty. Of these, the first thirty-six were perfectly opened, while the remaining four were even better than perfect, each capable of providing an additional five hundred pounds of True Essence Power.

Setting aside all his other powers, if Qi Tian used just the power of these forty meridians, a single punch could produce nearly twelve thousand eight hundred pounds of force. With the Heavenly Dao Engine activated, coupled with his other physical strength and the amplification of the Eight Desolate Demon Tiger Fist, his power could only be described as terrifying.

Feeling somewhat unsatisfied with his cultivation progress, Qi Tian left the Cultivation Room, went to the reception hall, rented the room for another five days and returned to continue his closed-door cultivation.

At first, Qi Tian thought about opening up more meridians but eventually realized that it was wishful thinking. No matter how hard he tried or even increased the Heavenly Dao Engine’s power to its limit, it was impossible to open the forty-first meridian.

Qi Tian knew he had reached the extreme limit of the Qi Cultivation Phase. After making futile attempts, he stopped wasting time and began trying to integrate all forty meridians into one system.

For cultivators, each meridian serves as a river for True Essence. Previously each flowed individually without interfering or connecting with one another. The transition from the Qi Cultivation Phase to the Foundation Establishment Stage involves merging these rivers into a True Essence sea, analogous to how all major rivers flow into the ocean. In this way, all meridians form an organic whole, each meridian intertwined with the others.

This process is never easy for any cultivator. Individuals like Chu Yang and Fang Junqiang had spent years on this phase, cautiously taking each step, not daring to be careless as any mismanagement of these meridians could lead to endless complications.

Qi Tian had a method for the Foundation Establishment Stage in his possession. When he was in the Lianying Realm, he had managed to obtain an entire sect’s inheritance, which included a technique for the Foundation Establishment Stage. Therefore, he did not need to return to the Imperial Master Mansion to attempt the transition from the Qi Cultivation Phase to the Foundation Establishment Stage.

Qi Tian first guided the Ren and Du meridians and used their True Essence to assault the Dantian in an attempt to form a Qi Sea. Qi Tian was extremely cautious during this process, fearing any mistakes. Remarkably, it went smoothly to his surprise. The two meridians did not require much effort to form a Qi Sea in his Dantian, and both meridians connected to the Qi Sea.

Qi Tian did not expect it to be so effortless. He then attempted to introduce the third and fourth meridians… The process continued seamlessly without any issues. Each new meridian reaching the Qi Sea expanded its size.

By the time all forty meridians had connected to the Qi Sea, its size was considerably substantial. Examining it with his Divine Sense, Qi Tian estimated it to be about a zhang in diameter.

Qi Tian was both stunned and overjoyed. He hadn’t anticipated such a smooth journey of connecting all his meridians and successfully forming a Qi Sea. This meant he had successfully established his foundation and become a cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Stage.

What surprised him even more was the size of his Qi Sea. According to the texts he’d come across, a Qi Sea of one chi in diameter was considered satisfactory for a novice at the Foundation Establishment Stage. Two chi was something to boast about, and three chi demonstrated unparalleled talent. But even prodigies couldn’t achieve a Qi Sea of about a zhang in diameter, the difference was simply enormous.

Just as Qi Tian was about to scrutinize his Qi Sea, he felt a movement in the Heavenly Dao Engine in his palm. Before he could understand what was happening, a flash of light appeared in his Qi Sea. Looking again, he was stunned to find the Heavenly Dao Engine had settled right in the center of his Qi Sea, motionlessly sitting there like a large turtle in the water.

Qi Tian didn’t understand why the Heavenly Dao Engine had relocated, but assured himself it wasn’t a bad thing. After all, he couldn’t control the Heavenly Dao Engine entirely. Although it sometimes obeyed his commands, it also acted on its own accord. Everything it had done so far had been beneficial to him, so he concluded this should be no exception.

Qi Tian tallied the cost of his closed-door cultivation and found that despite his rapid cultivation speed, the expenses were alarmingly high. In just over half a month, he had spent over three thousand mid-grade spirit stones, an average of two hundred per day. These were mid-grade spirit stones, not low-grade. At such a rate, even Xiao Xiaowu, the Mansion Master of the Imperial Master Mansion, and Huang Liuyan, the Lady Doctor, might find the cost burdensome. However, Qi Tian had spent them all. If Xiao Xiaowu knew, he would certainly be heartbroken.

Luckily, Qi Tian wasn’t particularly concerned about wealth. He was more interested in enhancing his abilities. As he had now become a cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Stage, he felt somewhat self-reliant. For instance, at the Imperial Master Mansion, Foundation Establishment cultivators were considered the backbone. Given his high starting point, he would undoubtedly secure a prominent position among them.

Qi Tian checked the time noticing that his rental period was nearly over. He picked up some mid-grade spirit stones and began to cultivate. When his time was up, he left the Cultivation Grounds.

Emerging from the Cultivation Grounds, Qi Tian put on a mask. He was still quite young, and his early advancement to the Foundation Establishment Stage was both a blessing and a curse. If he didn’t learn to protect himself and ended up being captured, forcing him to reveal his secrets of early advancement to the Foundation Establishment Stage, he would be in trouble.

The mask Qi Tian wore was one he had acquired in the Lianying Realm. It was quite effective, hiding his youth from Qi Cultivators and only the skilled Foundation Establishment cultivators might see through it. To the average Foundation Establishment cultivator, his face appeared unclear, making it hard to tell he was a young man.