“Lord Wan, Coach Wu is a level 18 martial artist, and a single sparring session with him costs 30,000 Blue Star Coins,” Li Yuan calculated. “But you are a Prime Warrior… according to the prices I found, a sparring session with a Prime Warrior starts at 100,000 Blue Star Coins.”
Watching the serious expression on Li Yuan’s face, Wan Qinghe struggled to hold back a laugh.
He suspected that Li Yuan was feigning ignorance, but it wasn’t good to call him out on it.
Indeed, the fees for sparring with a Prime Warrior were exorbitantly high.
But the reality was… there was no market for it.
For martial artists or students at about level 10, those between levels 15 and 18 could usually fulfill the sparring responsibilities.
Sparring with a Prime Warrior?
That was often only needed by martial artists above level 15.
But martial artists of such levels already possessed the strength to protect themselves and could delve into certain Star Realms to fight to the death with genuine Star Realm creatures.
Not only could they temper themselves, they could also earn money.
Thus, unless a Prime Warrior was willing to ‘lower their own worth’,
there would be no space for them in the sparring market.
“Haha, don’t worry, I’ll give you a discount,” Wan Qinghe laughed. “How about this, 10,000 Blue Star Coins per session?”
Li Yuan smiled.
10,000 Blue Star Coins? For Lord Wan, this was practically giving it away for free.
He instantly understood that this was Lord Wan’s way of further closing the distance between them.
“Good.”
Li Yuan did not refuse, and with a smile said, “Then I’ll trouble you, Hall Master.”
Through his uncle Li Changzhou’s teachings, sometimes Li Yuan was not afraid of owing too many favors.
What is rapport?
There is no affection without interaction, and those willing to help you will often continue to do so.
For the current Li Yuan, forming a deeper connection with an influential figure like Wan Qinghe was advantageous and harmless.
“Haha, you’re certainly not shy,” Wan Qinghe laughed.
He now confirmed that Li Yuan’s earlier accounting was just for show.
“I am on good terms with your teacher Xu Bo, so in the future, you don’t need to call me Lord Wan,” Wan Qinghe said with a smile. “I’m older, so just call me Uncle Wan.”
Li Yuan was momentarily stunned.
“What’s the matter, unwilling?” Wan Qinghe asked with a smile. “If you are reluctant, then never mind.”
“Of course I’m willing,” Li Yuan replied with due formality, respectfully performing a salute: “Li Yuan greets Uncle Wan.”
Wan Qinghe nodded, his esteem for Li Yuan growing even higher.
Knows when to advance and when to retreat, understands human relations, values family, possesses high talent, and trains extremely hard… indeed, he is an uncut gem.
“Alright.”
“Now that you’ve called me Uncle Wan, I will fulfill my duty as an uncle.”
“You may disregard other things, but martial arts cultivation cannot be taken lightly,” Wan Qinghe said seriously. “Put on your protective gear, and let me see the level of your spear technique.”
“Go all out, don’t worry about injuring me.”
“Yes,” Li Yuan nodded, understanding the terrifying strength of a Prime Warrior.
Even if he stood still and let himself be attacked, he probably wouldn’t break through his defense.
Soon.
The two actually began their combat session.
“Huff!” Li Yuan, holding a long spear, suddenly burst forth, and with a single stab, more than twenty spear shadows instantly appeared, thunderously striking toward his opponent.
“Boom!”
Wan Qinghe held a long stick, which moved with astonishing speed, striking from behind to the front, effortlessly blocking Li Yuan’s fierce thrust.
“Buzz~” Waves of terrifying force, like ocean waves, traveled through the spear shaft in an instant, making Li Yuan’s arm tremble, first numbing his arm, then his whole body.
This was a very peculiar method of exerting force.
With just one exchange, Li Yuan realized that Lord Wan’s skill realm was far above his own.
“Oh? You managed not to drop your weapon?” Lord Wan’s eyes flashed with surprise: “Your Spear Technique?”
Lord Wan could feel that Li Yuan’s burst of strength was indeed around level 10.
But his mastery of spear techniques was higher than he had estimated.
“Again,” Lord Wan commanded. “Continue to attack me, and remember, feel the vigor in my stick.”
“Yes,” Li Yuan nodded and once again abruptly unleashed his attack.
“Boom!”
“Pfft~” “Swish~” Li Yuan’s spear technique immediately changed, becoming even more mysterious and unpredictable. One thrust followed another; some of these techniques were swift, some hammered with great force, some slashed sideways, and some were fierce and angry stabs. Overall, they surged toward Wan Qinghe like a tide.
These moves, while appearing different, all actually originated from the “Galaxy Waterfall” technique.
The Starry Sky Five Forms were not merely five simple techniques.
In fact, each form contained a multitude of responses to an enemy’s spear technique.
The Galaxy Waterfall was one of the Starry Sky Five Forms, most adept at continuous attacks, building momentum unceasingly.
“Clang!” “Clang!” Wan Qinghe held the stick in one hand, quite easily fending off Li Yuan’s assaults.
Each time, as soon as Li Yuan began to build up his spear technique to burst forth, he would suddenly be counterattacked by Wan Qinghe.
The strange vigor that trembled down would disrupt Li Yuan’s spear style completely.
It was extremely uncomfortable.
“This kind of vigor.” Li Yuan tried his best to perceive it, his spirit penetrating the spear shaft, attempting to figure out the pattern of the vigor being transmitted through Wan Qinghe’s stick.
It was incredibly complex!
It was as if he was facing a tangled mess, with no clue where to start.
“It’s impossible to dissipate all the vigor in an instant; it’s a very sophisticated method of handling vigor,” Li Yuan immediately realized. “What I can do is to try to dissipate some of it incrementally, thereby neutralizing more and more until I can fully cope with it.”
Li Yuan immediately changed his strategy for dealing with it, and his spear techniques also began to change accordingly.
“Hmm?”
Wan Qinghe, being far more advanced than Li Yuan, noticed at once and was surprised: “So quickly, he’s found the right approach?”
“Could he truly be a genius who understands instinctively?”
…
Inside Martial Arts Room 7024, after an intense hour of battle, it was Li Yuan who first couldn’t keep up.
He surrendered and laid down his long spear.
“Uncle Wan, I’ve reached my limit,” Li Yuan shook his head with a wistful smile. “It’s too difficult to dissipate the vigor from your stick technique.”
Battling with Wan Qinghe for an hour exhausted him more than a full day of his usual cultivation.
“Do you feel it?” Wan Qinghe asked with a smile.
Li Yuan nodded.
“Talk to me,” Wan Qinghe urged.
“In terms of pure strength and speed, your bursts are very weak, probably even weaker than mine,” Li Yuan said gravely. “But with each exchange, the instant explosion of vigor, whether it’s entangling force, shocking force, or unloading force, you are far superior in applying these kinds of vigor.”
As a “Spear Technique Master” who had reached 25% of the Fourth Level, Li Yuan now had quite a high perspective.
“Correct,” Wan Qinghe smiled. “That is exactly what I want to teach you today.”
Li Yuan immediately listened carefully.
“In terms of physical quality, you’ve reached the threshold of an Entry Rank Martial Artist,” Wan Qinghe said. “Next, you must gradually work towards becoming a Prime Warrior.”
“Do you know the three great challenges of a Prime Warrior?” Wan Qinghe inquired.
“I know,” Li Yuan responded solemnly. “Spiritual power, skill realm, and physical quality.”
Spiritual power at level 20, skill realm at the Fourth Level with mind and body in unity, and physical quality at level 19.9.
These are the three fundamental requirements for stepping into the realm of a Prime Warrior.
It was not a secret; naturally, Li Yuan was aware of them.
“Right,” Wan Qinghe looked at Li Yuan. “For most First Rank Martial Artists, spiritual power and skill realm are the most difficult. That’s why they consume Spirit Nourishing Potions and Spirit Nourishing Pills. Advancing from the Third to the Fourth Level in skill is a significant challenge.”
Li Yuan nodded slightly.
Advancing in skill realm was indeed difficult. Transitioning from the perfection of the Third Stage to the Fourth Level had stalled him for many days.
As for spiritual power? He had been cultivating the “Observing the Great Sun Starry Sky Scripture” for so long and still hadn’t reached level 20.
“However, for a normal Martial Artist, improving the body is relatively easier,” Wan Qinghe continued. “But for you, it’s exactly the opposite.”
“Your greatest challenge is improving your body.”
Li Yuan did not dispute this point. Without the aid of High Rank cultivation methods, it was indeed much harder to enhance physical quality.
“Using treasures like the Body Cleansing Marrow, you saw significant short-term effects,” Wan Qinghe said. “But once your physical quality reached level 15, it became increasingly difficult.”
“Level 15?” Li Yuan pondered thoughtfully.
“Beyond level 15, a Martial Artist’s body is already extremely strong,” Wan Qinghe declared solemnly. “For example, a level 15 Martial Artist can throw a punch with a force of over ten thousand kilograms.”
“And a level 19 Martial Artist? Their punch can exceed a full force of over fifty thousand kilograms.”
“With each level’s difference, the gap in strength is astounding.”
“Historically, the original generation of Martial Artists truly spared no expense, utilizing all kinds of treasures and combined with the topmost talents. Only then did they gradually elevate themselves to become Prime Warriors,” Wan Qinghe said. “But you don’t have such external conditions.”
Li Yuan listened silently.
Indeed!
Organizations like the Martial Hall and Kunlun Martial University seemed to value him, but they would certainly not give him those truly extraordinary treasures yet.
The certainty was too great.
“Of course, if you continue to cultivate step by step, I reckon that by about the age of 22, you could become a Prime Warrior,” Wan Qinghe said. “Four years, a Prime Warrior at the age of 22, is quite fast for most people.”
“But compared to your skill realm and spiritual power, it’s too slow,” Wan Qinghe shook his head. “You also have to create laws, which would waste your prime cultivation time.”
Li Yuan was left speechless.
Originally, Wan Qinghe estimated that I could become a Prime Warrior in at most four years, around my senior year of college.
“Uncle Wan, what should I do?” Li Yuan asked the question the other party had intended for him to ask.
“One is through Heavenly Materials Treasures, but that’s not realistic, so let’s not talk about it.”
“Two, it’s about skill.” Wan Qinghe said earnestly, “This is also what I want to talk about today, if your skill could quickly reach the ‘heart and skill entering subtlety’.”
“Then, the evolution speed of your body will greatly increase.”
“Heart and skill entering subtlety?” Li Yuan was stunned for a moment, he was unfamiliar with these terms.
“Fourth Level skills are divided into two minor levels,” Wan Qinghe said with a smile, “The first realm is Unity.”
“The ‘Unity’ that ordinary Martial Artists talk about is actually just the preliminary mobilization of whole-body vigor, achieving a unified force in large muscle groups and bones.”
“But upon entering the Fourth Level, the heart further perceives the body and can further excavate deeper potential from the body, unleashing greater strength and speed.”
Li Yuan nodded slightly, the reason he could fight a level 12 Moon Demon Wolf King with level 9 during the combat assessment was exactly because of this.
“Theoretically, if one can excavate one’s body potential to the extreme, a level 10 Martial Artist can easily contend with many level 14 or even level 15 warriors.”
Li Yuan also felt deeply moved, this was the terrifying aspect of profound skills.
“However, when the perception of the body’s strength reaches a certain extent, it’s often difficult to continue excavating.”
“Each person has different limits, which is why many Prime Warriors are stuck at the initial rank of Fourth Level,” Wan Qinghe explained, “To further break through, one must delve deeper into the body with the heart, allowing the power of the heart to reach every muscle, every bone, and even every flow of blood.”
“From top to bottom, the slightest injury in the tiniest capillary can be clearly perceived with the ‘heart.'”
“By then, not only can one unleash the body’s limit of strength, one can also detect various minor injuries and easily repair them, maintaining the body in its peak condition, and extending one’s lifespan to over 200 years.”
“This is the perfection of Fourth Level skills, a thought of the heart discerning subtlety!”
“Also known as the Subtle Realm!”
“It is also one of the necessary conditions for breaking through to be a level 25 Prime Warrior,” a hint of longing flashed in Wan Qinghe’s eyes.
Li Yuan’s eyes widened as he listened.
Perfection of Fourth Level skills? A lifespan of over 200 years?
This is a level 25 Prime Warrior!
“Think about it, if your skill reaches ‘subtlety,'” Wan Qinghe said with a smile, “with the utilization of your body reaching its limit, how fast do you think your body’s evolution will become? I’m afraid that with enough resources, you could achieve level 19.9 in just one or two years.”
Immediately, Li Yuan had a goal in his heart, subtlety! The perfection of Fourth Level skills!
“Uncle Wan, have you reached the subtlety in your skills?” Li Yuan suddenly asked.
“I…”
Wan Qinghe’s voice abruptly stopped, and he stiffly changed the subject, “By the way, apart from the actual combat training today, there’s something else I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Sure, please go on, Uncle Wan,” Li Yuan, discerning everything, chose not to expose his newly acknowledged ‘uncle,’ caring for his feelings.
He was already a mature nephew, learning to take care of his uncle’s emotions.
“Song Yi, the Vice Hall Master of the Starfire Martial Hall’s branch in Starry Sky Pass, remember her?” Wan Qinghe said.
“Yes,” Li Yuan nodded, he remembered her.
She was only willing to offer him a D-rank contract.
But Uncle Wan was better, directly giving him a B-rank contract.
“She offered 1 million, wanting to invite you to do an interview program on television,” Wan Qinghe said with a smile, “talking about how you bonded with Starfire Martial Hall from a young age, how you aspired to be part of Starfire Martial Hall, and finally, after some efforts, succeeded in signing a contract with Starfire Martial Hall—the ‘inspirational growth story.'”
“What do you think? Are you interested?”