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The sun rose, casting morning light over the Human World.
The early morning sunlight shone upon the mountain area. Zhao Li's eyes flickered, then he opened them, only to find himself lying on the grass at the back of the mountain. Thinking about what happened last night, he shook his head and chuckled to himself:
"Zhao Li, Zhao Li, why are you being so sentimental? You've lived for over thirty years in two lives, and you still cry. You really are something."
Zhao Li looked at the sun, dazed for a long while, then got up and walked to the nearby pond. He scooped up two handfuls of water and splashed it on his face. Looking at his reflection in the water, he thought to himself, "Zhao Li, goodbye… Perhaps I can do something…"
Zhao Li wiped his face and straightened his robe. He had intended to go down the mountain and return home, but then he remembered the cultivation technique he had received from his father yesterday. He decided to study it.
With that thought, Zhao Li took out the scroll from his storage ring.
"Hmm, the Blazing Fire Technique. Father said this is a Fire Attribute, Intermediate Rank of the Mystic Tier cultivation technique. I remember from the novels that cultivation techniques are divided into four tiers: Heaven, Earth, Mystic, and Yellow, with each tier further divided into high, middle, and low ranks. Xiao Huohuo's family has the highest rank as Intermediate Mystic Tier. His grandfather must have cultivated that and reached the Fighting King realm. From what I've read in the novels, the Misty Cloud Sect's highest-level cultivation technique is likely Advanced Mystic Tier, and they probably don't have Earth Tier techniques, which would suggest they can reach the Dou Huang realm."
Unrolling the scroll, Zhao Li looked at the cultivation technique, deep in thought:
"It's a pity that over the years, Grandfather and the others have always treated me like a child, and they've been vague about many things."
Zhao Li examined the cultivation technique, frowning at times and nodding at others. After a long while, he lay on the ground, took a deep breath, and put the scroll away.
After reading the cultivation technique, Zhao Li found that it was not much different in essence from the Yellow Tier techniques he had seen before:
"If we consider the cultivation process as a machine's production process, then Dou Qi is like a natural resource, and the cultivation technique is the converter. The better the cultivation technique, the more efficiently it can absorb and convert the energy of heaven and earth, making it easier to transform into energy that the machine can use. Martial techniques, on the other hand, are like the machine's output power, converting the fuel into work. This might not be entirely accurate, but it's roughly the idea."
"It's no wonder that becoming a Martial Practitioner is the first step in true cultivation. Only a Martial Practitioner can cultivate a cultivation technique. The Dou Qi Vortex is like the core engine of the machine; without the core, the machine can't function."
Zhao Li sighed, recalling what his father had said when he asked for the cultivation technique.
"In this world, cultivation seems to be more about purely absorbing and taming Dou Qi to make it one's own, and the cultivation technique is the method that has been explored and summarized over the ages. Based on the rough descriptions of Heaven Tier cultivation techniques in the novels, the factors that distinguish the ranks of cultivation techniques are mainly two: the ability to absorb Dou Qi and the ability to tame and convert Dou Qi. Given the information I have, this is likely the case."
Zhao Li recalled the descriptions of cultivation techniques in the novels, comparing them with the information he had from the cultivation technique he had read and the vague words he had heard from his elders. He had some guesses.
"Single evidence is not enough. I'll look for more cultivation techniques in the future to see if this is true."
After all, these were just his own speculations based on what he had read in the novels. Zhao Li did not want to make a definitive conclusion about cultivation techniques just yet.
"Hmm, come to think of it, I haven't cultivated since breaking through to the Martial Practitioner realm. I'll try it out now."
Perhaps saying goodbye to his past life had changed his attitude towards cultivation. Zhao Li immediately sat down in a cross-legged position, placed his hands in the five-point heavenward posture, and began to cultivate.
Zhao Li had just focused his mind to enter a cultivation state when he felt a shift in his perspective. It was as if he had detached from his body, becoming an observer who could clearly see everything inside his body. Zhao Li understood this was the 'Internal Vision' ability of a Martial Practitioner.
Instinctively, Zhao Li used the cultivation methods he had studied over the past few years, which he had already mastered. This time, Zhao Li clearly 'saw' the Dou Qi circulating through his meridians, gathering the Dou Qi from various parts of his body and directing it toward the meridians, then converging it toward the Dantian.
Finally, after passing through the Qi Vortex, this thread of Dou Qi became finer and purer, and Zhao Li felt he had better control over it. He then repeated the process of circulating the Dou Qi.
After several more cycles, Zhao Li ended his cultivation.
Zhao Li reflected on the cultivation process he had just experienced. After personally 'seeing' the changes in the Dou Qi within his body, he gained some new insights and had many questions.
"During the cultivation process just now, my Qi Vortex seemed to only refine the Dou Qi without actively drawing it in. I suppose it's because I haven't practiced any Cultivation Technique and haven't found a way to make the Qi Vortex actively absorb Dou Qi. However, using my old cultivation methods, I could still 'see' the obvious changes in the Dou Qi, and the Dou Qi gathered from various parts of my body seemed easier to control."
"In a natural state, everyone has some amount of Dou Qi in their body. Being able to sense and gradually use the Dou Qi within the body is the cultivation of the Dou Qi stage."
"However, this Dou Qi remains in the body due to the concentration gradient in the environment. Normally, as one's control over Dou Qi increases, the concentration difference between the body and the external environment decreases, making cultivation more difficult."
Zhao Li thought about the ancient families that had created their own small worlds and the major sects that were often established in blessed lands. This was likely due to environmental factors, and the disciples of large clans and major sects generally had better realms and found cultivation easier, influenced by the external environment.
"It seems that the environment has a significant impact during the initial stages of cultivation. This might be the reason for the low, middle, and high levels of the Dou Qi stage. It's no wonder that in the novels, Xiao Yan still maintained his third rank even after dropping a level. Perhaps the Dou Qi concentration in his environment was at the third rank level."
Zhao Li couldn't help but recall the things he had seen and heard over the years, gradually summarizing:
"Whether it's the Silk Robe of the Fighting Scholar stage, the Dou Qi armor of the Great Fighting Scholar, or the Flexible Transformation of the Fighting Spirit stage, these are all standards for one's mastery of Dou Qi. If one cannot control the Dou Qi, let alone condensing a Silk Robe, it might just dissipate into the air, causing one's realm to regress instead of advancing."
"As for the characteristics of the Fighting King and Dou Huang levels, they probably involve using their own Dou Qi as a medium to interact with the external Dou Qi, thereby gaining control over the surrounding energy on a small scale, and using this ability as a 'momentum.' The ability of Fighting Kings and Dou Huangs to fly using Dou Qi wings is likely a result of this. While a Fighting Spirit can also condense Dou Qi wings due to their dexterity in controlling Dou Qi, they don't understand 'momentum,' so even if they condense wings, it's just for show."
Every time he asked about these things, his grandfather and others would just smile and give vague answers, telling him not to aim too high. Zhao Li knew very little.
"Books have written that Dou Zongs can initially control space and walk on air, which is likely the mastery of energy within a certain range around them. Hmm, the term 'Domain' might be appropriate. As for the control of space, it seems more like a gift from the World, with most people knowing the what but not the why, gradually exploring and entering the realms of Dou Zun and Dou Sheng."
Zhao Li recalled the signature abilities of each realm described in the books, and his thoughts wandered.
When reading novels in the past, Zhao Li had always found it strange that realms seemed to be like keys. As long as one reached the corresponding realm, they could master certain abilities.
"After countless years of development, the cultivation system of the Dou Qi continent has indeed reached its peak. With the efforts of countless people, a path to the mountain peak has been built, which is very impressive. But, just because it has always been so, is it necessarily good?"
Zhao Li had a crazy idea.