Chapter Five: Accelerate!

“By the way, what is the name of this cultivation method?” Zhang Chengyi asked eagerly.

“Nameless,” Xuqing replied. “It’s merely an internal energy cultivation technique casually created by a senior master, primarily aimed at health preservation and longevity. The internal energy it cultivates is balanced and gentle, making it very suitable for beginners like yourself.”

Health preservation and longevity?

Well, that’s fine—having it is better than not.

Zhang Chengyi accepted this readily, picked up the small booklet, flipped through it casually, and asked, “Let me give an example: if my internal energy suddenly increased by dozens or even hundreds of times, would my body explode?”

In novels, after Duan Yu absorbed so much internal energy, he felt his chest about to burst. What if something went wrong with a sudden surge?

“Well...” Xuqing was momentarily at a loss. You’re just someone receiving transmission and will most likely remain a novice who practices for fun. Why worry about internal energy increasing a hundredfold?

Isn’t this just needless anxiety?

Suppressing a smile, he thought for a moment and said, “This nameless cultivation technique contains a method called ‘guiding energy into the void,’ which allows the internal energy to be stored within the internal organs. So, the quantity of internal energy shouldn’t pose a problem.”

Achieving the level where you must guide energy into the void typically takes over twenty years of cultivation. His statement was more playful than serious.

Of course, since Shaolin Temple accepted payment, they wouldn’t mess with the technique.

[I recall this term being mentioned in Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils…]

Thanks to his excellent memory from not being human, Zhang Chengyi recalled his previous life’s reading of Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils. Indeed, Duan Yu also used the ‘guiding energy into the void’ technique, storing all his internal energy in his five viscera and six bowels.

The book specifically described how the internal organs could store internal energy. After Duan Yu stored his internal energy in his internal palace, he felt so light he was about to float into the air.

“Thank you,” he said, then remembered that in Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, having internal energy and being able to use it effectively were two different things. So he hurriedly asked, “How should I use this internal energy?”

Duan Yu hadn’t practiced the meridians, so he was easily subdued by Jiumozhi’s pressure point strikes. No matter how strong the internal energy, if it’s not dispersed properly through the meridians, it can’t be controlled. Otherwise, like Duan Yu, one would feel like they’re about to burst. But after guiding energy into the void, using internal energy requires passing it through the meridians, which makes one vulnerable to pressure point attacks.

Ah, it seems having internal energy alone is not enough.

If he also had to spend time learning martial arts like fist, footwork, or weapons, that would be a heavy burden. Should he consider mastering the Six Meridian Divine Sword?

But wouldn’t a hero trying to steal a good man’s technique be a bit off?

He felt conflicted.

Xuqing shook his head inwardly. This person was truly clueless about martial arts but insisted on learning, making it hard to evaluate. Out of courtesy, he patiently explained, “The booklet in your hands contains basic methods for using internal energy and cultivating the meridians.”

With your current amount of internal energy, even after practicing, you probably won’t be able to achieve sharp senses or agility—it’s too little.

Moreover, Shaolin’s martial arts emphasize two aspects: ‘substance’ and ‘application.’ ‘Substance’ refers to internal energy, and ‘application’ to the methods of usage. This applies to the seventy-two ultimate skills and other martial arts alike. This nameless health preservation technique left by a senior monk is intended to nourish the entire body.

Its advantage is that it cultivates many meridians; its drawback is that the internal energy lacks offensive power, making other martial arts less effective.

The Supervising Monk’s intention in transmitting this technique to Zhang Chengyi was clear: he did not want him to learn Shaolin martial arts and go out using them for violence.

After all, you didn’t request any particular cultivation method, right?

Techniques of this type number in the dozens, if not hundreds, across the martial world. Passing on this one is no big deal—it takes decades to cultivate it to any proficiency. It’s a rudimentary and basic technique, with the only advantage being that it was casually created by a Shaolin monk and contains some unique methods for meridian cultivation.

But... since he was leaving the mountain tomorrow, would there even be a ‘later’?

Xuqing said, “Tomorrow, I will escort you down to Dengfeng County. If you have any questions, come find me next door anytime.”

After saying this and seeing that Zhang Chengyi had no more strange questions, he got up and left.

[Good.]

Seeing he was alone in the room, Zhang Chengyi rubbed his hands and opened the booklet, reading it carefully.

The content and illustrations were straightforward, without beating around the bush. Indeed, Shaolin Temple sincerely intended to transmit martial arts techniques to him.

Most of the booklet discussed how internal energy flows and how to cultivate the meridians, with clear diagrams. To help a novice like him, the first page was a chart of human meridians.

After all, he wasn’t truly “human,” but rather the essence of the Jinshan Ranger Modifier, with memory abilities far beyond human capacity. Once he snapped a screenshot, it was as if he memorized it. Understanding was another matter, but no one could surpass his ability to recite.

After ‘memorizing’ the meridian map and becoming familiar with the circulation of internal energy in his body, he decisively opened the data for this body.

The negative statuses of [Internal Injury], [Hunger], and [Fatigue] had disappeared. Under [Constitution], a new attribute called [Internal Energy] appeared. Using the current internal energy quantity as one, he tentatively adjusted it to two.

What was originally just a wisp of warm energy instantly doubled, as if it had always been that abundant.

His ability to adjust data was absolute. He could forcibly bypass any conditions and directly set values to any amount, more or less.

Zhang Chengyi circulated his internal energy again to become familiar, then doubled it once more.

Not sure if it was because his initial internal energy was so low, doubling it didn’t produce much sensation. Then he grew bolder and directly increased it to ten, reasoning that he could always reduce it if problems arose.

After increasing to ten, his internal energy surged fivefold. He immediately felt a slight distension and turbulent heat, but quickly gathered and suppressed it, continuing the circulation.

In Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, internal energy isn’t usable immediately upon acquisition. One must have harmony between heart and qi and then have trained the meridians. The episode where Duan Yu’s Six Meridian Divine Sword was sometimes effective and sometimes not illustrates this well, especially with Shaolin martial arts.

Hence the term ‘mind method,’ like Shaolin mind methods.

But this part was somewhat off for Zhang Chengyi because he literally had no heart.

Literally no heart—he controlled this body through a login interface, his natural perspective detached. To put it mystically, it was [free and unbound].

Others need harmony to use internal energy; he forcibly commanded it regardless of harmony, ordering it to work!

The cost was a significant reduction in power. The technique he practiced was a health preservation method, and with heart and qi out of sync, the internal energy he exerted was at best only about forty to fifty percent as effective as others’.

But there was an advantage: at least he could use internal energy simply and brutally.

Even this small benefit would be a game-changer for any martial artist, but for Zhang Chengyi, it didn’t matter.

Give me ten times more, ten times every minute. If others see that, they might think I can’t increase it!

After savoring this thought, he viciously began the cycle of increasing points—becoming familiar—then increasing again, embarking on the path of rapid strengthening.