Planet Pulverizer: A Mortal's Ascent

Chapter 73: Experience

Li Pin didn't stay in the martial society any longer and went straight home.

After spending a day watching the matches yesterday, he realized that the most intense competitions only occurred between experts of Transformative Force and Core Force. The confrontations between two experts of Core Formations martial artists were actively avoided.

Among these competitors, the experts he wanted to observe, such as Gu Haoran, Jiang Zhenhai, and Zhou Yuanfei, the top contenders in the Jiang Province City intermediate category, didn't face any worthy opponents.

There were already very few Transformative Force practitioners, let alone Core Force and Core Formation experts. This arrangement was established with the intention of protecting the Core Force and Core Formation competitors. This was to ensure that they'd qualify for the top ten. It would save them from directly confronting the seeded competitors and being prematurely disqualified. However, matches where there was a huge disparity in strength between their opponents were meaningless to watch.

The intermediate and youth categories run concurrently for ten days, followed by the adult category, which also lasts ten days. Then, there are the five-day round-robin matches for the intermediate and youth categories, as well as for the adult category. Li Pin thought to himself.

That was the competition schedule. From this arrangement, it was clear that the adult category held the most prestige. Unfortunately, Li Pin only held a level-two martial certificate, which wasn't enough for him to participate in the adult category. Otherwise, he would've been much more exhilarated to battle against top experts in the adult category.

The adult category was renowned for its clashes among grandmasters. In this year's competition's adult category, the ones with the most prominent reputation were Zhao Shenyan, Nie Wuji, and Xiao Dingjun, each renowned for their achievement of Internal Cultivation and Blood Renewal. They were poised and focused on the national competition.

A twinge of regret welled up within Li Pin's heart. While Cao Tianyou and Jiang Qingyue were also grandmasters, they had grown old. They couldn't possibly match the prowess of Zhao Shenyan, Nie Wuji, and Xiao Dingjun, the young grandmasters at the pinnacle of their strength.

Not mentioning them, if these young grandmasters were to fight elderly Martial Saints in life-and-death battles, the outcome might also be evenly split.

"Back on the Blue Planet, those who've reached Core Formation were hailed as grandmasters, and Aura Cultivation experts were viewed as earthly immortals. What incredible methods do these folks use to reach such heights?"

During this time, Li Pin watched numerous videos of Aura Cultivation Grandmasters, gaining a solid understanding of the Aura Cultivation realm. However, unless he made further improvements, even activating his Blood-Seething Secret Art against peak grandmasters like Zhao Shenyan would give him slim chances of victory. After all, watching videos was one thing, but real combat was quite another.

The determination and fighting spirit of Aura Force Grandmasters were as strong as iron and as resilient as steel. Engaging in real combat with them would undoubtedly be more terrifying than any video portrayal, much like the difference between observing a ferocious beast on screen and confronting one in reality.

Li Pin regained his composure. "I'm not in a rush. After the Jiang Province Martial Competition, there's still the national competition. There should be plenty of Aura Cultivation experts in the national competition's intermediate category."

He could wait for one month.

He took a moment to concentrate, assessing his current state. There weren't any significant changes in his other attributes. However, the intense stress of the near-death encounter with Zhang Chiyan triggered a slight increase in his Mental Spirit attribute.

[Mental Spirit +0.15]

Li Pin nodded. "Not bad."

Without delay, he activated the Five Qi's to Primordiality Art to refine his internal organs. As for the Samedhi Heart-Training Art, it might be more effective, but he still lacked mastery over it.

After a moment, he thought of something.

The Fire Serpent Strike is the Solar Vermillion Sect's ultimate move. It harnesses the power of the heart, associated with fire. The Solar Vermilion Force channels the strength of the heart, the leader of the five organs, to unleash its power.

To an extent, it involves stimulating the heart, igniting its strength, and forcibly harmonizing the other organs to resonate together... This places greater strain and potential harm on oneself, but it enables the martial artist to unleash Aura Force more effectively.

Following this line of thought, Li Pin quickly realized something.

Vitality, Qi, and Spirit form an integrated whole. Refining vitality into qi, and refining qi into Spirit, they are inseparable from each other.

Originally, his Samadhi Fire in the Samadhi Heart-Training Art lacked a Spiritual Qi Flame. To remedy this, he planned to cultivate the Great Sun Astral God Meditation Art, harnessing the fiery essence of the Great Sun Astral God to ignite his Spiritual Qi Flame.

However, the Solar Vermillion Force sparked an idea in him.

By stimulating his heart and unleashing its strength, he could forcibly synchronize his organs into resonance. To push his Spiritual Qi Flame to its utmost limit... he could ignite his Spiritual Qi Flame in this manner and swiftly refine his heart using the Samadhi Heart-Training Art.

As for achieving the peak of Spiritual Qi Flame ignition...

"Blood-Seething Secret Art!"

In the next moment, the cells within Li Pin's body, those which had been recorded, seemed to react, as if stimulated by Blood-Seething Powder. They vibrated intensely as a significant surge of qi and blood gushed from his marrow, swiftly activating and boiling.

In just a moment, his spiritual qi surged to its peak, his entire body feeling as if it was ablaze with blood. In this heightened state, he wasted no time and activated the Samadhi Heart-Training Art.

In an instant, his Vital and Qi Flames blazed intensely. As they burned, he refined his qi into Spirit. The Spirit forged was akin to a spark igniting his Spiritual Flame. With all three fires alight, he began to temper his organs. The effect of this fervent and aggressive approach was far quicker than that of the Five Qi's to Primordiality Art.

Visualizing organs-tempering as swimming, the Five Qi's method was like gently placing someone in a pool to practice step by step. In contrast, the Samadhi Heart-Training Art was akin to throwing someone into a rushing river, where survival required instant learning and failure meant demise.

"Hahaha! That's the spirit!"

Feeling the exhilaration of his burning vitality, Li Pin burst into laughter and launched into his fist techniques without hesitation.

Under the influence of the Blood-Seething Secret Art, his qi and blood surged to their peak, boosting his power by over thirty percent. However, this also significantly reduced his control.

It's a well-known fact that people focus more easily under the influence of pain. Combined with the growth in Li Pin's Mental Spirit attribute, he managed to unleash three consecutive Core Forces through his Five Elements Unity.

Following these three strikes, his already strained organs finally began to rebel. If he concentrated and observed closely, he would have seen numerous blood vessels rupturing. If he were to continue anyway, he might likely lose a significant amount of blood.

Considering he still had a match in the afternoon, Li Pin reluctantly halted his use of the Samadhi Heart-Training Art, Blood-Seething Secret Art, and Five-Elements Body Refining Art. As he stopped, an overwhelming sense of indescribable weakness washed over him.

"Wow, not even in a life-and-death battle against a Core Formation expert have I pushed myself to this extent... Only an opponent at the Aura Force realm would be able to push me this hard...." Li Pin muttered to himself.

Luckily, he knew his body well. He swiftly activated the Innate Qi-Nurturing Technique to replenish his body.

After several hours, Li Pin began to feel that his primordial qi was nearly depleted, so he rummaged through a nearby storage shelf and retrieved a small porcelain bottle. He then poured out a pill from it.

It wasn't some mystical elixir, but a medicinal pill Liu Pinsheng concocted from nourishing herbs. While the cost had risen significantly, its convenience for portability was its main benefit. Fortunately, Li Pin wasn't overly concerned about the added expense of tens of thousands per month by now.

Li Pin thought to himself,

Under the influence of the Blood-Seething Secret Art, I was able to unleash Core Forces three consecutive times. While I needed to rely on techniques like the Five Elements Unity, an Aura Cultivation level technique, it still shows my enhanced mastery of the power amplification from the Blood-Seething Secret Art. By the time I can unleash a Core Force strike without relying on the Five Elements Unity or the Eight Enormities True Fire Force, that will signify my complete mastery of the Blood-Seething Secret Art.

However, this would likely be a lengthy process, as he was constantly refining the Blood-Seething Secret Art. By the time he fully mastered the enhanced power of the art, its amplification effect might have increased from the current thirty-six percent to perhaps thirty-eight or even forty percent.

Collecting his thoughts, Li Pin resumed circulating the Innate Qi-Nurturing Technique to regulate his body.

***

At four o'clock in the afternoon, Li Pin followed the text's directions and arrived at the sixth training area. By the time he got there, a considerable number of people had already gathered there, waiting.

His arrival caused murmurs of discussion to arise. Despite this, Li Pin maintained a confident composure as he calmly waited.

When it was his turn, he stepped to the center of the arena. However, his opponent did not show up even after a long wait.

After more than ten minutes, the officiating personnel came onto the stage and announced, "Master Li, your opponent is feeling unwell and unfortunately will not be able to participate in this match."

With that, he immediately declared, "The winner: Li Pin!"