Chapter Forty-Two: The Way to Enhance One’s Aptitude

Hearing Yuanchen’s words, Long Yun’s eyes lit up, suddenly recalling incidents on Divine Dragon Island when some elders forcibly improved the aptitude of younger disciples. The elders had once said that aptitude was not immutable; there was always a faint hope for change.

When tempering the nine apertures at the Enlightenment Realm, the thickness of each aperture varied, determining the grade achieved at the Qi Condensation stage. That faint hope lay in the strength used during the tempering of the nine apertures: those that were not fully penetrated weren’t all of uniform thickness. Some, after repeated tempering, were left with only a thin membrane, but due to the flow of one’s own true energy, further progress was impossible.

Yet, what one cannot do alone, others might achieve. The reason the elders could help certain disciples was by using their supreme mastery to forcibly penetrate those nearly-open apertures. In this way, aptitude could be improved. Now, Long Yun’s cultivation was far inferior to those elders, but knowing the method meant having hope.

Thinking of this, Long Yun was overjoyed. He reached out, resting his hand on Yuanchen’s shoulder, and a strand of his soul immediately entered Yuanchen’s body.

Yuanchen had only opened two of his nine apertures, placing him at the very bottom in terms of aptitude. After a brief examination, Long Yun’s face revealed a trace of wild delight.

Among the seven unopened apertures, two were nearly ready to be penetrated. Had Yuanchen not attempted to force them open, but instead spent more time refining them, he might have achieved four-aperture Qi Condensation—a truly regrettable loss.

“I’ll try to help him open them!” With this thought, Long Yun’s true energy instantly entered Yuanchen’s body, and he spoke, “Senior Brother, don’t resist. Let me give it a try!”

At Long Yun’s words, hope flickered in Yuanchen’s eyes. He calmed his mind and closed his eyes.

Long Yun carefully manipulated his true energy, directing it into Yuanchen’s apertures. Instead of directly attacking the two nearly-open apertures, he began to accumulate true energy before them.

He was gathering true energy, seeking to open both apertures in one decisive action.

“Let’s try! I hope Yuanchen won’t be harmed,” Long Yun thought, his heart growing heavy as he watched the accumulated energy reach its peak. He exerted full control over the energy within Yuanchen.

“Open—!” he shouted, both to steady his nerves and to give himself courage.

Boom—! The true energy surged violently, pressing hard against the two apertures.

Under Long Yun’s control, the energy formed into two fine, conical streams, minimizing the impact area. Long Yun had considered every detail he could.

Yet, it was still not enough. Back when the apertures were first broken through, it had taken endless refinement to finally shatter that thin membrane.

Now, though Long Yun had reached the Spirit Convergence Realm, it was still insufficient. The two streams of energy struck Yuanchen’s apertures, but they did not budge.

“Ah—!” Yuanchen cried out in pain as his apertures trembled, his essence thrown into chaos.

Long Yun’s heart tightened. He quickly withdrew his energy and sent soothing true energy into Yuanchen’s meridians, stabilizing the disorder within.

At last, under Long Yun’s suppression, Yuanchen’s condition gradually stabilized.

After a long moment, Yuanchen slowly opened his eyes, meeting Long Yun’s apologetic gaze.

“I’m sorry, Senior Brother Yuanchen, I failed,” Long Yun said, a trace of regret in his heart. His cultivation was simply too low. It seemed only upon reaching the Innate Realm would he have a chance.

Once breaking through to the Innate Realm, true energy would transform into innate energy—a change not only in quantity but also a qualitative leap. Innate energy was closest to the essence, in a state of utter chaos, meaning that upon reaching the Innate Realm, one could communicate with heaven and earth.

At that point, with his skill and control, Long Yun was certain he would succeed.

He was confident the Innate Realm was not far off.

“It’s all right! Junior Brother Long Yun, you did your best. I’m used to it, but thanks to your five sword arts, I have rekindled hope!” Yuanchen spoke, though his eyes showed some disappointment.

Long Yun sighed. “Don’t worry, Senior Brother. Once I break through to the Innate Realm, I’ll help you open those two apertures. Meanwhile, I suggest you and the others practice near the Sword Stone. The soul within has awakened—perhaps you may gain some real insights.”

Yuanchen nodded and left.

Nearly ten days passed. Long Yun imparted all the difficult points, annotations, and his own experience with the five supreme sword arts to the seventeen senior and junior brothers, urging them to practice diligently. Only then did he lay down his heavy burden.

He went to the side of the Dragon Gate Pine, lightly leapt up, and sat cross-legged upon its branches.

During these ten days, the Heart Sword branch had been extraordinarily quiet—so much so that Long Yun felt uneasy, as the Grand Elder remained restless. The quieter they were, the more uncertain Long Yun felt.

“I must grow stronger! If I can break through to the Bone Transformation Realm and acquire a spirit bone, then even those at the Transcendence Realm will no longer be my match. Even if Qiu Di’s conspiracy erupts, I’ll have the power to protect myself,” Long Yun thought.

He wasted no time. His cultivation art circulated, traversing his meridians, the nine apertures opening naturally, and pure energy flooding his body.

Having just broken through to the Spirit Convergence Realm, Long Yun needed secluded cultivation to stabilize his realm, while also attempting to break through to the Bone Transformation Realm.

Back on Divine Dragon Island, Long Yun had already attained the Innate Realm at seventeen—a monstrous achievement here, but nothing remarkable there. Among the remaining children, many possessed the same cultivation, and he himself ended up abandoned in the streets.

The Bone Transformation Realm meant infusing power into the marrow. Because Divine Dragon Island inherited the bloodline of the Dragon God, they typically did not seek to replace their bones with spirit bones at this stage, for fear of diluting the bloodline.

But now, things were different. Long Yun understood the benefits of the Dragon God bloodline, but having left Divine Dragon Island, he wished to be an ordinary person, so he needed spirit bones to replace his own.

Day after day, three months slipped by.

During these months, aside from occasionally guiding the disciples of the Heart Sword branch, Long Yun spent all his time cultivating atop the Dragon Gate Pine.

After three months, he felt himself much closer to the threshold of the Bone Transformation Realm. All he needed was an opportunity to break through.

Yet finding a suitable spirit bone had become the most pressing problem. The Heart Sword branch was weak, and Xue Renqi was only at the Transcendence Realm. It was not suitable to ask him for help, and his master lacked the ability as well.

Long Yun was a perfectionist; ordinary spirit bones would not suffice. Turning this over in his mind, he formed a new idea.

Half a month later, feeling ready to attempt breaking through to the Bone Transformation Realm at any time, Long Yun finally ceased his cultivation.

“Master, I need to go out for a while,” he said one day, seeking out Xue Renqi.

Xue Renqi’s heart stirred, his brow furrowed. “Long Yun, you’re now at the center of the storm. Going out could mean facing an ambush by the Grand Elder.”

Long Yun shook his head. “Master, I’m about to break through to the Bone Transformation Realm. I must find a suitable spirit bone, or my fighting power will be greatly diminished.”

Xue Renqi sighed. In other branches, the master would find a suitable spirit bone for the disciple, but his own cultivation was not high, and he needed to oversee the Heart Sword branch. Thus, Long Yun had to search on his own.

Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but sigh, “Ah, it’s my fault, Master. If only I were stronger, you wouldn’t have to risk yourself like this.”