Chapter 643 - 348: Grade 3 Enlightenment, Martial Emperor Creates Three Flowers

However, Qiu Mountain knew very little about the secret realm of a martial artist’s physical body. After a few words, he murmured to himself,

"Besides this, this old man knows no more..."

After speaking, it seemed like he couldn’t answer Su Mu’s doubts in detail, so he changed the topic, starting to explain about the Middle Third Grade realm that Su Mu used for comparison.

This was exactly what Su Mu had hoped for; the matter of the secret realm was a facade, aimed at exploring the mysteries of the Fifth and Fourth Grade realms.

A genuine Martial Arts Grandmaster, it seemed, would have unique and profound insights in this area, which was precisely what Su Mu needed at the moment.

However, Su Mu did not expect to gain unexpected benefits either. Indeed, one should not underestimate anyone; every great cultivator who could advance to the Upper Three Grades on their own was extraordinary.

"The ancient martial dao of the Pre-Qin era has passed. The Middle Third Grade cultivated by today’s martial artists actually serves as a transitional stage before the Upper Three Grades. Because of this, once someone enters the Middle Third Grade, with the corresponding cultivation resources, they can slowly reach the Fourth Grade even if lacking aptitude. However, doing so would almost leave no hope of advancing to the Upper Three Grades."

"The first realm of the Middle Third Grade is the Five Extremes Realm, also called the Five Viscera Realm or the Blood Exchange Realm. A Lower Three Grades martial artist tempers the body to gain a sense of Qi and cultivates Martial Arts Force, which is one of the three great origins of a martial artist, but the Lower Three Grades are just a shallow taste. Even if one can refine their power multiple times, it’s ultimately hard to delve deeper.

It is not easy for an ordinary person to practice martial arts for ten or twenty years before cultivating Transforming Force. Those who complete the Fourth Refining Force and cultivate Pill Force in the Lower Three Grades are already martial dao geniuses, while those who can master the higher level Gang Force in the Lower Three Grades are rare and exceptional. This is the formidable power that belongs to a Martial Arts Grandmaster."

"For this reason, except for a very few unprecedented prodigies, even martial dao geniuses stop at the level of Pill Force. During this period, the martial artist has initially completed the tempering of their flesh body, and the muscles and bones have been initially refined."

At this point, Qiu Mountain glanced at Su Mu. He had already learned from Hong Tang that the young man in front of him not only mastered Gang Force, but also could wield it with a thickness of more than two inches. As for Qiu Mountain himself, as a Martial Arts Grandmaster, he could only wield it a little over four inches.

This sufficed to show that Su Mu was not just beginning to master Gang Force, and Qiu Mountain suspected that Su Mu was that kind of prodigy who comprehended Gang Force at the very beginning of entering the Middle Third Grade, or even during the Lower Three Grades.

But whether it’s through self-comprehension or guided by someone behind the scenes, Qiu Mountain believed it was the latter, as the former achieving that was too far-fetched.

"The path of Gang Force cannot be pursued, so how should martial artists seek a breakthrough?"

"From the outside to the inside, seek oneself!"

Su Mu almost blurted out these eight words without thinking, and upon hearing these words, Qiu Mountain showed appreciation and continued speaking.

"These eight words ’from the outside to the inside, seek oneself’ are well said. People say that martial artists are solitary figures, and I believe that the understanding of a martial artist largely lies in the pursuit of strength residing within their own flesh and blood. Compared to the Three Religions Cultivation Method, which requires extremely high talent to access, martial artists focus their strength on the flesh and blood that everyone owns."

"The path of Gang Force cannot be pursued. Exterior fortification of physique has been initially achieved. The martial artist of the Middle Third Grade starts to fortify the internal organs. Directly using Qi Blood cannot effectively refine the organs, and the organs, unlike flesh, muscles, and bones, are very fragile. A mishap could result in severe injury or even death on the spot."

"Achieving this is not easy. The cosmos and everything in it, the Five Elements are endless, and so martial artists, after entering the Middle Third Grade, begin to seek to integrate the freely roaming Five Elements Spiritual Qi from the heavens and earth into themselves. But the way martial artists use spiritual Qi is different from Daoist Cultivators among the Three Religions Cultivators."

"The Daoist Cultivation Method directly absorbs spiritual Qi, storing it in the Sea of Qi Dantian; martial artists, however, turn it to their own use by integrating it into the Five Forces. Humans are the most spiritual of all creatures, and the Five Viscera within correspond to the Five Elements. Therefore, martial artists use the Power of the Five Elements to refine the viscera, turning the Power of the Five Elements into a hammer to temper the visceral organs."

"Once the Five Viscera have grown strong, Blood Exchange is merely the natural end result. As the Qi Blood strengthens to a point where it can be externalized, martial artists gain more means of defense against long-range attacks.

Attribute Power is similar. Once Martial Force is transformed into Attribute Power, it greatly enhances its lethality, which directly increases the martial artist’s own strength. This is the Middle Third Grade First Realm for martial artists."

"Reaching this step, the martial artist has completed the refinement of the Five Viscera with the Power of the Five Elements, and to progress further, they must still fortify the remaining six visceral organs."

"The so-called Five Viscera and Six Viscera, the six viscera and the five viscera are mutually complementary, both storing essence and Qi. The viscera complement each other, interconnected by the meridians, and by enhancing them, naturally, a martial artist can further improve in all aspects."

"And at this time, if one wants to continue using the Power of the Five Elements for tempering, it will inevitably disrupt the balance between the Five Elements and Five Viscera achieved in the Sixth Grade. Breaking this balance could likely lead to disequilibrium."

"Therefore, martial artists divert their attention to the power of Yin and Yang. The heavens and earth have not only the generation of the Five Elements, but also the balance of Yin and Yang;"

"In places prone to lightning, where earth fires surge, the Yang energy is abundant; in extreme cold places, various exotic cold pools born from naturally nurtured environments often manifest Yin Sha."

"Hence, martial artists begin to use Yin Sha and Yang Sha to refine the six viscera apart from the Five Viscera. In this process, martial artists are also gifted with unexpected surprises.

"Power under Yin Sha and Yang Sha is further tempered, and the creation of mutual generation and overcoming bestowed by the contained Power of the Five Elements helps to keep the martial artist’s Martial Force from completely losing control. It provides the power to resist the Yin Sha and Yang Sha, and in the process of integration, it also imbues the Martial Force with some Yin-Yang Power, in concert with the corresponding martial arts, increasing the martial artist’s overall strength once more."