My mentor once told me that when one reaches the Integration level of the Harmony of Man and Nature, there is hope of entering the Heavenly Rankings. And upon achieving Unity, truly harnessing spiritual qi, they would undoubtedly become a Heavenly Ranker.
However, there are only a few known Heavenly Rankers in the world. I wonder who this man is. The elderly man pondered.
The gap between Land Rankers and ordinary martial artists or commoners was immense.
As for Heavenly Rankers? They were called land deities for a reason. These were individuals who pursued the profoundness of heaven and earth and had long transcended the mundane.
It could be said that apart from exceptional circumstances, many Grandmasters were rarely able to catch a glimpse of a Heavenly Ranker throughout their lives.
Could it be a Heavenly Ranker from Great Jin? As the black-robed elderly man contemplated this, his expression subtly changed. I hope it's not someone with a grudge against Great Jin.
In the past century, Great Jin had expanded its territory aggressively, and the covert clashes among Heavenly Rankers had never ceased. Ordinary citizens and martial artists remained oblivious to this. However, as a disciple of an expert in the sect, with formidable strength of his own, the black-robed elderly man was keenly aware of this information.
“Governor Wang!” The elderly man called out to a figure several hundred meters away.
“Senior Lu.” The governor bowed in response.
“Immediately instruct your finest painter to capture this senior’s portrait,” the elderly man instructed with a deep voice. “Then, send it to the Northern Army camp and the Yuanxia Palace for the Grandmasters to examine.”
“Understood,” the governor acknowledged. To be appointed as governor, ruling over tens of millions, required a certain level of astuteness. He quickly deduced that Senior Lu was uncertain of the identity of this mysterious expert.
The Northern Army camp, led by the north king, was composed of several Grandmasters. The Yuanxia Palace, one of the three martial arts havens of the Holy Continent, similarly accommodated several Land Rankers throughout the year. According to legends, the Yuanxia Palace was ruled by a Heavenly Ranker.
As time passed, more soldiers arrived at the scene to maintain order. The black-robed elderly man noticed that the mysterious Heavenly Ranker seemed to be in deep meditation and took great care not to disturb him, sending the crowd of martial artists and citizens away, and even temporarily closing the famous Skysaber Canyon.
Wu Yuan sat cross-legged atop the huge boulder, looking like a rugged tribesman.
This is what it means to achieve Unity?
It had been four months since he departed from Cloudhill. During this time, he traversed the Jiang and Yuan Continents, immersing himself in the world, and gaining profound insights into heaven and earth. With his formidable soul, his progress accelerated swiftly.
After arriving in the Yuan Continent, even without relying on a first-grade divine weapon, his pure fist and palm techniques subtly stirred spiritual qi. From that moment on, his advancement became increasingly pronounced, and his connection with the vast heaven and earth grew clearer.
As June arrived, Wu Yuan journeyed into the Holy Continent, a place with distinct customs and culture from the Jiang Continent. This experience deeply moved him. He vaguely sensed that he stood on the cusp of truly harnessing spiritual qi, and just needed to take one last step.
Standing at the peak of Skysaber Mountain, he overlooked the vast Yuanjin Plains, stretching for hundreds of li. And there before his eyes lay the Skysaber Canyon, a mere dozen zhangs wide yet extending for over ten li.
Did a Heavenly Ranker carve this canyon with his saber? Wu Yuan couldn't say for sure. But the grandiosity of the world resonated deep within his heart. At that moment, he finally grasped the magnificence of the world. Everything fell into place.
It was like the first cry of a newborn baby, the sprouting of a bamboo shoot, or the blossoming of a bud overnight.
In that moment, Wu Yuan's soul transcended the limitations of his physical form, attuning to the boundless spiritual qi!
He took the pivotal step beyond the mundane and became a true qi refiner. He had reached the Unity level, the true form of Harmony of Man and Nature!
Even without the need for a first-grade divine saber, I can perceive the boundless spiritual qi with utmost clarity.
Metal, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, and thunder were the seven most prevalent types of spiritual qi, which corresponded to the various powers of heaven and earth.
It was a hundred times, even a thousand times clearer than sensing them through his divine saber!
And beyond these types of spiritual qi, there existed other enigmatic and rare manifestations of heaven and earth's power. Wu Yuan could only vaguely perceive them, yet couldn't harness them.
The fusion of numerous powers of heaven and earth culminates in the complete heaven and earth's power. These mysterious powers underpin the very workings of the world. Wu Yuan experienced a sudden epiphany. Spiritual qi is the embodiment of heaven and earth’s powers in operation.
Such a profound comprehension of heaven and earth's essence was difficult to describe in mere words.
The so-called qi refiner is an individual who seeks to understand the profoundness of heaven and earth and command its powers.
If I comprehend and control each power, from the surface of heaven and earth’s profundities till its depths, until mastery of the complete heaven and earth's power, unlocking the essence of heaven and earth, I shall become the most formidable qi refiner. Wu Yuan intuitively grasped this truth.
The attainment of complete Harmony of Man and Nature brought about this natural realization without any guidance. Simultaneously, he felt himself propelled instinctively in this direction.
The soul is nourished by the physical body, and in the same way, it can be nourished by heaven and earth’s power. Wu Yuan's Soul Force extended outward.
His soul naturally drew upon heaven and earth's power, much like a tree’s roots breaking through the soil and its leaves basking in the nourishing sunlight.
Wu Yuan felt his soul being nourished by the encompassing essence of the heavens and earth, experiencing a remarkable surge in growth. This advancement surpassed the effects of the black pagoda's Visualization technique by tenfold, even a hundredfold. As his soul strengthened, so did his Soul Force, and his perception of the vast heaven and earth grew clearer with each passing moment.
Concurrently, Wu Yuan inspected his internal body, and realized that the previously hazy 108 acupoints were now vividly clear, and he could sense every minute passage of his meridians.
No wonder it’s so difficult for a Land Ranker at the Integration level to enter the Heavenly Rankings. But once Unity is achieved, a swift breakthrough will occur, transforming one into a genuine qi refiner.
The soul nurtured by heaven and earth would experience rapid growth, making qi consumption and refining effortless.
Immersed in this experience, Wu Yuan felt an overwhelming sense of comfort. In just one day, his soul grew four or five times stronger, an astonishing feat. However, what surprised Wu Yuan the most was that his physical constitution remained stagnant.
According to The Sword Hierarch, when a Land Ranker's skill reaches Unity, they naturally perceive heaven and earth and are nurtured by its power, leading to a rapid improvement in their physical constitution. But why has my body not experienced any changes?
When he first consumed qi, spiritual qi entered his body, but there was no transformation in his physical constitution. Despite the infusion of heaven and earth’s power, Wu Yuan's body showed no significant improvements or advancements. It seemed that there was no more room for growth, as if he had reached his limit.
That’s right, I’m still in the Strength Training phase and have not even begun Viscera Cultivation and Marrow Cleansing. My lower dantian lobe has yet to develop to maturity, yet my physical strength is already at 220,000 catties.
At best, heaven and earth's power can improve my physical strength to 400,000 catties.
As I continue to grow, my physical constitution will only get increasingly exaggerated. This indicates that my body is already very refined, and needs time to grow gradually. The blood-red mist's influence on the evolution of my body is much stronger and more pronounced than that of heaven and earth's power.
The mystical properties of the mist once again awed Wu Yuan.
My rapid advancement to the Unity level can be attributed to my natural comprehension ability and also the strength of my soul, which surpasses that of other Land Rankers.
A person's comprehension abilities were not fixed but rather influenced by experiences, cognition, and various other factors. With a powerful soul, one could perceive the profundity of heaven and earth more clearly. If also given proper guidance, their rate of comprehension would accelerate.
I’ve only gotten an initial grasp of the Unity level, and can only control about 30,000 catties of heaven and earth's power. I still have a long way to go before reaching The Sword Hierarch’s level. However, with a strong soul and continuous contemplation of the different powers of heaven and earth, I will quickly improve, and will soon be able to command 120,000 catties of heaven and earth's power.
From The Sword Hierarch’s guidance, Wu Yuan knew that reaching the Unity level alone was a feat that countless Land Rankers struggled with, and that beginners like him could only control around 20,000 to 50,000 catties of heaven and earth's power. However, with time and familiarization, he would be able to harness around 120,000 catties of heaven and earth's power.
The Sword Hierarch had taken a mere year or two to command 120,000 catties. Now, Wu Yuan’s next step was to achieve complete mastery of Unity. The books left by The Sword Hierarch only offered vague suggestions on how to achieve a breakthrough, urging him to comprehend the essence of a specific type of heaven and earth's power. Once he understood it, the power he could wield would surge to an astounding 200,000 catties!
For now, I must cultivate and grow to the absolute limit of this stage. As for the method of breakthrough...I shall deal with it when the time comes. At the very least, I have achieved the true Harmony of Man and Nature. Nothing can stand in my way of becoming a true qi refiner. His heart brimmed with longing and anticipation
At the tender age of seventeen, Wu Yuan attained Unity. He knew that none before him in the history of the Middle Land's thirteen continents had accomplished such a feat.
To become a true qi refiner, there was only one thing left to do: enhance his physical constitution.
With a powerful soul and the ability to control the body down to the smallest meridians. Once my musculoskeletal development is complete, I can practice the 'Dragon Marrow Cleansing Technique', pushing my body to its peak in one go and reaching the limit of my human body. He eagerly anticipated his eighteenth birthday. By then, his strength would soar to unimaginable heights.
Wu Yuan gathered his thoughts and settled into the lotus position, immersing himself in the boundless world. Having just achieved a breakthrough, and with his spirit and soul transformed, this first clear view of the world would prove to be his greatest opportunity for progress.
The earth stood solid and unyielding, flames burned with explosive power, trees sprouted and flourished, and all forms of life pulsated with beauty. The world, in all its splendor, unfolded before Wu Yuan's eyes, captivating his senses.
Nurtured by the boundless expanse of the world, Wu Yuan's spirit transformed, growing stronger and attaining a heightened command over heaven and earth's power. In truth, Wu Yuan had long been aware of the crowd surrounding him, but he had no desire to interrupt his cultivation. Instead, he wielded heaven and earth's power to keep them at bay. And if anyone dared to disturb him? Wu Yuan wouldn't hesitate to eliminate them with a throwing knife.