Previously, after obtaining the Dominant Tiger True Intent Diagram from the Iron Eagle, Ning Qi had comprehended several top-tier martial arts from it, including the Dominant Tiger True Qi Force, enriching the foundation of his Origin of All Phenomena chapter and also contributing a few more martial arts techniques to the Zhenwu Sect's Scripture Pavilion.
But what tempted him the most was the Heaven-Man Secret Art hidden within.
However, he had already noticed at the time that the Dominant Tiger True Intent Diagram only comprised one-third of the whole. To piece together the complete Heaven-Man Secret Art, he would have to comprehend all three True Intent Diagrams.
Originally, with Iron Dragon and Iron Tiger escaping far away, Ning Qi thought he had no chance of collecting the three diagrams.
But who would've thought—
His Master turned out to be so fierce, chasing ten thousand miles to Cangzhou and killing both Iron Dragon and Iron Tiger.
The disciples each picked out their desired treasures.
Daoist Longshan saw Ning Qi gazing at the two True Intent Diagrams and smiled.
"Little Nine, go ahead and comprehend these two True Intent Diagrams."
All the disciples smiled knowingly.
They had studied the Dominant Tiger True Intent Diagram before, but the time and effort it required did not match the benefits, so they only dabbled in it occasionally for reference.
Ning Qi nodded with a smile. He was already interested in the two diagrams, so naturally he wouldn't pretend to decline. Once he comprehended them, it would benefit the Zhenwu Sect anyway.
After the treasure bestowal—
Daoist Longshan's expression grew solemn:
"Now that I have reached the Heaven-Man Realm, as is tradition, a Heaven-Man Ceremony will be held. At that time, not only will many forces from Qingzhou attend, but even nearby prefectures may send people. It'll be a mixed crowd, with all kinds of probing eyes. You must be mentally prepared and not let them look down on our Zhenwu Sect."
This was also one of the reasons for bestowing treasures—to raise the disciples' strength as much as possible.
Luo Wentian and the others all wore serious expressions; they had already guessed some of this.
The Heaven-Man Ceremony was already a major event, and with Daoist Longshan stirring up waves in Qingzhou, this particular ceremony would likely have some unpredictable elements.
"Master, have you already decided on the date for the Heaven-Man Ceremony?"
Daoist Longshan slowly replied:
"Normally, the ceremony can be held within a year of reaching the Heaven-Man Realm. I still have some insights from this breakthrough to digest. Once I finish my seclusion, I'll set the date—probably in autumn or winter."
"There's still over half a year left. You must work hard and also urge the disciples under you not to slack off."
Daoist Longshan was going into seclusion again.
This was normal. The time right after breaking through to the Heaven-Man Realm was when one's connection with Heaven and Earth was strongest, and progress came fastest. Daoist Longshan had just broken through and immediately descended the mountain to defend his disciples. Now that things were settled, he naturally wouldn't waste this valuable period.
Everyone bowed respectfully:
"We will remember, and train diligently."
Their eyes were resolute. They all knew the Heaven-Man Ceremony was an excellent opportunity to enhance the Zhenwu Sect's prestige. Each secretly resolved to work twice as hard. Even Ye Qinghe, who was usually lazy, had become more serious in her martial cultivation after the recent attacks on the sect.
After giving all these instructions—
Daoist Longshan entered seclusion again.
But unlike before, the Zhenwu Sect was now as steady as Mount Tai, without the prior sense of unease.
After the upheaval in Qingzhou, everyone knew Daoist Longshan had stepped into the Heaven-Man Realm. For now, no one dared provoke the Zhenwu Sect, and the disciples could cultivate in peace.
...
Inside the Seeking Dao Courtyard.
Ning Qi felt a bit of regret. He had originally wanted to ask his Master Daoist Longshan to demonstrate the power of Heaven and Earth for him. But now that his master had gone back into seclusion, he could only let it go. He understood—his master had his own cultivation to tend to and couldn't always revolve around him.
"There's plenty of time in the future. I'll slowly ask for guidance. For now, there are two things to focus on."
Ning Qi's gaze settled on the wooden box and the three True Intent Diagrams in front of him.
One was to reverse-engineer the formula for the Condensed Qi Pill.
The other was to comprehend the Heaven-Man Secret Art hidden within the three True Intent Diagrams.
Comparatively—
He felt the former would likely take more time.
As for the latter, having already studied the Dominant Tiger True Intent Diagram, he found it relatively easier.
"Still, my cultivation is quite deep now. I can try creating a few Secret Arts to help my senior brothers and sisters speed up their training."
Ning Qi pondered.
He was now at the Eighth Fold Realm, and there were no more mysteries left in the Inner Origin Realm cultivation for him. It wouldn't be difficult for him to develop targeted Secret Arts that his senior brothers and sisters could understand—techniques that could accelerate their Inner Origin Realm progress, after which they could break through by taking the Condensed Qi Pill.
This way, the Zhenwu Sect could steadily produce Qi Origin Realm martial artists.
Since this could be done in his spare time, it wouldn't delay his own cultivation. In fact, it was a way of testing his own progress.
Daoist Longshan's gift today also reminded him—it was indeed time to help elevate the strength of his senior brothers and sisters. Otherwise, if one day both he and his master were gone, it would be troublesome.
"I'll take my time with the Secret Arts. Let's try the Condensed Qi Pill first."
Ning Qi opened the wooden box.
He scraped a bit of powder from the Condensed Qi Pill with his fingertip, gently pinched, rubbed it between his fingers, observed it visually, smelled it, and even tasted it.
He closed his eyes and carefully attuned himself to the sensation.
"It contains a power that allows Internal Energy to condense into substance. The main ingredient should be Exotic Beast Blood Pill. Also present are Bluestone Herb, Evernight Flower, and Ice Stone Milk..."
Blood Pill—
A miraculous essence found only in the bodies of Exotic Beasts strong enough to produce it, containing powerful energies.
As for the other herbs, each had its own use, and several were rare even within the Zhenwu Sect's treasure vault.
In just a short time, Ning Qi had identified more than half of the ingredients and properties. More than that, he had already devised a few rough formulas based on their characteristics—thanks in no small part to his profound mastery of both medicine and alchemy.
After repeatedly scraping and tasting, Ning Qi finally identified all the medicinal properties.
Without hesitation, he sent White Ape to the treasure vault to fetch the ingredients.
Time to start testing.
In this world, alchemy wasn't as mystical as people thought—or at least, what Ning Qi had encountered so far in his current realm wasn't.
Within the courtyard stood a pill furnace, flames burning beneath it.
Herbs were thrown in one after another, their impurities refined away and transformed into liquid, then set aside. Once all was ready, the liquids were fused in order, layer by layer, until they formed a final potion, then kneaded into a pill.
The most critical part of this process was the order of ingredient insertion—a small mistake could lead to massive failure.
Next was the control of heat. Fortunately, this wasn't an issue for Ning Qi. His Internal Energy was vast and easily controlled; he could transform it into blazing fire or freezing cold as needed—an edge most alchemists lacked.
Ning Qi's expression turned solemn as he watched the furnace, waiting for the Condensed Qi Pill liquid to take shape.
An hour later—
The furnace cooled.
Ning Qi looked inside. His expression remained calm. As expected, he had failed.
It was only natural. If he had a ready-made pill formula, this would've been trivial for him. But to reverse-engineer one from a single pill? That was much harder.
Still, he was confident.
This failure had taught him a lot.
Ning Qi rubbed the cooled powder between his fingers, noting the differences from the original Condensed Qi Pill powder. In that moment, flashes of insight struck—he already had a much-improved plan forming in his mind.
He grew even more certain:
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"Within a month, I'll crack the Condensed Qi Pill formula. No problem."
With that thought, Ning Qi relaxed.
At this pace, he could definitely produce several Condensed Qi Pills before the Heaven-Man Ceremony, enabling Senior Brother, Second Senior Brother, and the others to reach the Qi Origin Realm.
Feeling cheerful, his eyes returned to the three True Intent Diagrams.
Time to switch gears—time to comprehend the Heaven-Man Secret Art.