Chapter 127: Tiger-Form Bone Refining, Qi Condensing Like Water!

Two days passed, and Luo Tian estimated that the breakthrough of his Divine Eye was imminent.

If a few more people achieved breakthroughs, he would be able to open the eyelids of the Divine Eye, and he would then be able to master its new abilities. Thinking of this, Luo Tian felt a subtle surge of excitement. Fortunately, even if these cultivators did not break through on the spot, as long as they gained some insight from his guidance and took a step forward, the experience points would still be credited to the Divine Eye. If not for this, the Divine Eye would likely have taken a much longer time to evolve again.

Letting out a long breath, Luo Tian began practicing his body-refining secret techniques in the valley. The focus of this stage was the "Tiger Form Bone Refining."

"Ox Form Skin Refining" could enhance a cultivator's surface defensive capabilities, but "Tiger Form Bone Refining" was no less significant or essential. For a cultivator, standing, walking, and performing various actions all relied on the movement of the skeleton. Only with the skeleton as the most solid support could one exert force through flesh and blood. Just like beasts wrestling, besides competing in raw strength, the skeleton played an indispensable role. Without bones, the counter-force would cause the flesh and blood to collapse into a puddle, let alone anything else.

Furthermore, through Qin Tianyu's memories, Luo Tian had learned that the realm above the Origin Core Realm was the Profound Body Realm. However, since Qin Tianyu himself had not reached that level, and experts who had reached the Profound Body Realm were unimaginably more powerful than those in the Origin Core Realm, even though Qin Tianyu had once encountered such powerhouses, he knew little beyond the fact that the Profound Body Realm was inextricably linked to the physical body. Consequently, Luo Tian had to place great importance on tempering his physical form.

A crescent moon hung high in the sky, spilling faint radiance, with countless stars surrounding it in a soft, non-dazzling glow. The valley was filled with a light breeze; though it carried a hint of chill, for an ordinary body-refining cultivator, the changes of the seasons mattered little. Luo Tian, having reached the very end of the Qi Condensation Realm, was only a thin membrane away from the Pulse Flow Realm. Once pierced, he would step into a new world.

Somewhere in the crevices of the mountain rocks, the chirping of insects echoed, not breaking the stillness of the night, but rather adding a touch of solitude.

Exhaling a long, turbid breath, Luo Tian began running through the valley, his legs moving with rapid, alternating strides. Afterimages flickered behind him, and his posture shifted constantly. At one moment, he was like a fierce tiger, agile and powerful, his pounces and presses filled with wind and awe; at the next, he seemed to transform into a wild ox, charging forward with unstoppable force.

Luo Tian had already mastered the Form chapter of the Nine Beast Fist of Form and Intent. Thanks to his diligent practice, the transitions between the nine animal forms were seamless, flowing like moving clouds and running water. It was as if he had been born with the ability to perform these transformations, executing them with ease.

After a bout of exercise, Luo Tian felt his muscles and bones were sufficiently warmed up, so he began the Tiger Form Bone Refining. Considering that his combat style focused on close-quarters fighting, he decided to set aside the tempering of his leg bones for now and start with his hands. Given his punch-to-flesh fighting style, the impact of the counter-force on his own body could not be ignored, so tempering the hand bones was a logical choice.

Luo Tian loosened his joints and stripped off his clothes, standing bare. Under the moonlight, his skin emitted a faint, shimmering glow. This luster was invisible during the day, but in the depths of the night, it was strikingly noticeable. It was a natural change that occurred when the skin reached a certain level of purity, not caused by external forces, making it feel harmonious rather than abrupt.

Luo Tian was not particularly tall, but his build was well-proportioned. Every ripple of his soft muscle lines and every streamlined bulge contained immense explosive power, which was visually pleasing. Compared to the hulking figures with bulging, visually jarring muscles, he was like a sheathed blade—his edge hidden, yet no one dared to overlook it. Especially after he crouched down to imitate a tiger-type beast, to an observer, it truly felt as if they were facing a ferocious predator.

"Begin!"

Rich, white light surged from Luo Tian's body as he channeled his Qi to its limit. Dense, smoke-like Qi flowed through his meridians, quickly reaching his hands. Before he even began the bone refining, Luo Tian winced, a flicker of lingering fear crossing his face. Although his previous session of Tiger Form Bone Refining had been effective in a short time, the pain had been excruciating. Had he not endured the agony of skin refining, he doubted he could have persevered. The "True Fire of Origin Transformation" was inherently violent and fierce, and because Luo Tian was attempting the Intent chapter—usually reserved for Pulse Flow Realm cultivators—while still in the Qi Condensation Realm, it was naturally fraught with difficulty.

Recalling the contents of the Intent chapter of the Nine Beast Fist, Luo Tian began the process of using Qi to refine his bones. The Qi traveled along three extremely fine meridians and struck directly against the periosteum. In an instant, a pain akin to needle pricks erupted from the surface of the bone, accompanied by a fierce, scorching sensation that vied for dominance.

The pain was intense. Luo Tian felt as if that segment of his bone was being calcined by a scorching flame, while the destructive intent within the Qi was brutally crushing the impurities within his periosteum. For a moment, the pain signals sent by his nerves felt like countless sharp needles stabbing into his mind, all trying to dig deeper.

The quality of his Qi was limited, so it could not—like the Essence Power of a Pulse Flow Realm cultivator—refine the bone from the marrow to the membrane through proper methods; it could only start from the surface and slowly penetrate inward. Of course, Luo Tian knew that once he reached the Pulse Flow Realm, the initial adaptation period for this technique would be bypassed. Enduring such hardship in the Qi Condensation Realm was merely to make his future path easier. Even if it was difficult now, it could be overcome.

A deep flush rose on Luo Tian's face, his expression becoming somewhat grim. His lips twitched, and he clenched his teeth to keep from roaring in pain. Bones were hard, but once damaged or compromised, they were harder to repair; even while enduring the agony, Luo Tian controlled his movements with meticulous precision, not daring to move recklessly. Despite the overwhelming pain, he did not dare to clench his fists, as doing so would alter the shape of his meridians, and he would have to waste more energy to bring them back on track.

Veins bulged on his forehead like twisted, ancient tree roots, adding to his fierce appearance.

"Grind, grind."

Luo Tian's teeth ground together, producing an unsettling, teeth-aching sound. Just hearing it was enough to feel the tremendous pain the youth was enduring. Time lost its meaning during the practice, and under the pressure of such pain, Luo Tian could not spare a thought for anything else. Only when the periosteum of the second segment of his right index finger had been roughly refined did he stop this near-mad behavior.

"Huff, huff."

Luo Tian sat on the ground, disheveled, staring at his right index finger. Although the Divine Eye was infinitely profound, it could only perceive pure energy at this moment and could not see everything else clearly. However, looking closely under the faint moonlight, he could still feel that the periosteum covering those two segments had changed—it was purer and cleaner.

This was only the beginning. By the peak of the Pulse Flow Realm, his entire body—flesh, bones, fascia, and skin—would be tempered by his own power. At that level, the raw physical strength alone would be immense, not to mention the addition of pure Essence Power.

"The road ahead is long and arduous."

After resting for a while, Luo Tian prepared to make one final push and directly proceed with his Qi cultivation. He would seize the momentum to break through to the Pulse Flow Realm in one go!

Entering this realm meant truly leaving behind the most basic, initial stage of cultivation. Once he possessed the ability to project Essence Power, the true power of his techniques would be perfectly unleashed, and his combat strength would be incomparable to that of the Qi Condensation Realm. This was the difference in realms.

Taking out the True Fire of Origin Transformation again, Luo Tian stared fixedly at the gently flickering flame, the light in his eyes growing more intense. Once he finished refining all the Qi from the True Fire, he could consolidate it into his own Origin Core and officially step into the Origin Core Realm!

A spark flew into Luo Tian's body. His face turned pale for a split second, but the flush quickly returned. Using the True Fire of Origin Transformation as a source of energy for refining was as painful as ever, but after many times, Luo Tian had grown accustomed to it. His willpower was strengthened through these repeated sessions of painful cultivation.

However, a cultivator's meridians were always fragile. Even after repeated flows of Qi, this attempt still caused some damage, though far less than his first time. Wherever the spark passed, his meridians were scorched and shattered, but the life force of the Endless Wood quickly repaired them. Each time his meridians were destroyed and then repaired, they became a fraction tougher. The progress of a single time was not obvious, but the cumulative effect of many sessions was significant.

He didn't care much about the rank of his "Fire Origin Scripture"; as long as it was sufficient, it was fine. The cultivation methods of the Qi Condensation Realm varied in difficulty and rank, but they were largely similar and did not create massive gaps. Luo Tian had already discovered the nodes of the Qi Gathering Array and obtained the True Fire of Origin Transformation, so his path was already vastly different from that of an ordinary Qi Condensation Realm cultivator.

Furthermore, after obtaining Qin Tianyu's memories, Luo Tian had a clear understanding of his future path, so he was no longer confined to low-level techniques. Under his refinement, the star-like energy of the True Fire of Origin Transformation finally turned into the purest Fire Origin Qi and entered his Dantian. The Qi, which had been like an impenetrable fog, became increasingly dense and concentrated after his efforts.

"Almost there! Just a little bit more!"

Seeing the breakthrough in sight, Luo Tian couldn't help but get excited. As another spark of the True Fire of Origin Transformation turned into Qi and entered his Dantian, the massive amount of Qi within finally began to change. The white Qi surged like clouds in a gale, as if something were brewing inside.

Luo Tian held his breath, focusing all his attention on his Dantian. The fluctuation of the Qi was initially small, like wind blowing through clouds. Soon after, it resembled the tides of the ocean, with waves surging and rolling toward the center. Then, like a violent hurricane stirring up monstrous waves, large clusters of Qi were forced toward the center by an invisible giant hand.

Luo Tian tried his best to control the Qi, not daring to slacken for a moment. "One final push!"

The evolution of Qi into Essence Power was a massive change in concentration and density. Once successful, it would allow a Qi Condensation cultivator to break through to the Pulse Flow Realm, possessing immense strength in every move—something an ordinary Qi Condensation cultivator could never match.

"Of course, I am not an ordinary person." Luo Tian thought that if he could kill an Origin Core expert while in the Pulse Flow Realm, that would be truly extraordinary.

Although his Dantian was silent, the condensation of the Qi cloud was accompanied by faint, thunderous rumbles, leaving Luo Tian unsure if it was real or an illusion. "This is the condensation of Qi into liquid, the transformation of gas into power!"

Seeing that the Qi cloud had been compressed to the limit, Luo Tian's focus reached an unprecedented level. At the very center of the Qi, the most condensed point suddenly rippled, and a drop of pale red liquid quietly appeared.

"Essence Power!"

Luo Tian's spirit lifted. This was the power only a Pulse Flow Realm expert could possess! Under his control, this drop of Essence Power detached from the Qi cloud, descended, and slowly came to a rest in the center of his Dantian, hovering quietly.

Feeling the surging energy within the Essence Power, Luo Tian was thrilled. Without hesitation, he immediately continued the process. Fortunately, the Qi he had refined using the True Fire of Origin Transformation was of excellent quality, so the process was not too difficult. If it had been ordinary Fire Origin Qi or ambient Heaven and Earth Qi, this step would have been much harder.

With the first drop of Essence Power formed, a second and a third followed in quick succession, gathering with the first under his control. The cloud grew smaller, while the condensed Essence Power grew more abundant.

"Hm? Not quite enough, it seems."

Do not be fooled by the small amount of Essence Power; its density was incomparable to Qi. A single drop of Essence Power, if converted back into Qi, would expand in volume by more than ten times. Luo Tian, focused on the Essence Power, suddenly realized that the most pressing task was not just controlling the condensation, but ensuring that more Qi entered his body. Otherwise, if the supply of Qi in his body broke, this perfect opportunity for a breakthrough would be interrupted—a truly regrettable outcome.

He knew that if his Qi reserves were plentiful at this moment, he might be able to consolidate the "Red Light Transformation" of the Pulse Flow Realm in one go, potentially reaching the early or even middle stage of the first transformation of the Pulse Flow Realm.

Luo Tian gritted his teeth in frustration, his gaze fixed on the True Fire of Origin Transformation, a flicker of struggle crossing his eyes.