At this moment, on the other side of the palace in an empty courtyard, a young girl with greenish hair sat on a stone bench in the courtyard unable to fall asleep.
Bang! Snap!
Under the bright moonlight, Yuanhui was exercising his muscles, every punch and kick vibrating with power. He seemed like a human pile driver, leaving deep footprints on the ground with each strike, the sound of his fists bursting out following the impact. Each punch was filled with explosive force.
"The Dragon Return Fist does indeed have a strong recoil after prolonged use... Is there really no way around this, master?"
Sweat dripped from every leg, even in the cold winter Yuanhui only wore a thin shirt, now soaked in sweat. His muscles were bulging, rhythmic with each punch and kick powerful and vigorous.
After finishing a few sets of martial arts moves, Yuanhui wiped his sweat and took out the "Ghost Shadow Step" wrapped in oiled paper from his bosom.
"This Ghost Shadow Step is truly outstanding, incomparable to ordinary techniques."
"Of course, the Xiao family's Ghost Shadow Step has always been a technique that can dominate the continent. It is a heaven-defying skill that combines martial arts and body movements, probably comparable to the lowest level of immortal techniques!"
Nobody knew when Wuxian had suddenly appeared, and using the Secret Sect Technique last time had aged him a bit more, making it impossible for him to recover quickly.
"Hmm, I've been studying for so long, yet I can only master the basics. This 'Ghost Shadow Step' is truly extraordinary."
Rolling his eyes, Yuanhui flipped through the sword techniques once more, feeling a slight sense of enlightenment.
"...You little brat, stop pretending!"
Wuxian scolded Yuanhui, hit him on the head, took the Ghost Shadow Step from his hand, and pointed out the flaws in Yuanhui's technique.
"For starters, to even begin the Ghost Shadow Step, you have to reach the initial level of the Limitless Realm. If your physical fitness wasn't better than an ordinary person's, you wouldn't even deserve to look at the Ghost Shadow Step!"
Despite this, Yuanhui managed to learn the first move of the Ghost Shadow Step - Ghost Walk. Different from the typical Qi-assisted sprint, Ghost Walk was extremely slow but could hide one's aura in front of opponents within one realm, enabling sneaky tactics to assassinate enemies at close range.
"However, it seems that you're still at the peak of Nine Hearts. I estimate you can only hold out for about four... and that time is now!"
No sooner had Wuxian spoken, Yuanhui was exposed in Wuxian's sight.
"What's going on here?"
"Haha, you can only last for four seconds. With your current strength, reaching the enemy would be very difficult, right?"
"Well... I can't help it, this is all I have, there's no need to push, I can give up anytime."
Yuanhui shrugged indifferently, knowing that Wuxian didn't have much hope for this technique, because...
"The remaining two moves require a peak Limitless initial level strength and approaching half-step Immortal physique. However, if you break through another level, you should be able to learn the basic Meteor Sword Art's second move, Meteor Fall Heart Technique."
Listening to Wuxian, Yuanhui's eyes glittered, contemplating deeply.
"Unfortunately, to truly unleash its power, you need to reach a realm above the Limitless realm."
Yuanhui's rising spirits were immediately doused by Wuxian's cold reality check, so he reluctantly opened the Ghost Shadow Step once more, discarded the longsword gifted by Baiqiu, and began practicing the Ghost Walk empty-handed.
Ghost Walk was the foundation of the Ghost Shadow Step, stimulating the practitioner's reflexes and instantaneous burst capabilities.
During the practice, Yuanhui noticed that using his full force with this sword style resulted in damage weaker than a normal sword strike by twenty to thirty percent!
"This... seems rather impractical, no wonder the Ghost King wouldn't use his big move until necessary."
This unexpected discovery made Yuanhui realize that while Ghost Walk should have been a basic movement technique, it was draining almost all of his Chi at Nine Hearts' peak level.
Seemingly simple, but with endless drawbacks.
"Ha, in a team battle situation, this move is practically a death sentence. Your teammates likely won't be able to save you once you venture deep into the enemy lines."
Meteor Sword Art, however, was different. While Meteor Slash was still challenging for Yuanhui to execute, its efficiency was exceptionally high. One swing could annihilate any opponent below the Limitless mid-stage.
But due to his weak strength and recent acquisition of the technique, he had difficulty mastering it quickly.
"Don't be discouraged. Your progress is already remarkable. Ghost Walk is not an ordinary technique and that's why there are so many rumors about it on the continent."
With that, Wuxian began to narrate the history of the Ghost Shadow Step before delving into the creation of the Ghost Pulse Technique.
"The Ghost Pulse Technique?!" Yuanhui's expression was now quite astonished. "Isn't that just a mythical technique?"
"Yes, indeed. According to legend, the Ghost Pulse Technique can connect to the other side, bring the dead back to life, and so on... all sorts of extraordinary abilities. And what you have in your hands, the Ghost Shadow Step, is the Ghost Pulse Technique of legend!"
"Really?"
"Just kidding!"
Yuanhui's excited mood was immediately dampened by Wuxian's mocking face, leaving him somewhat perturbed.
"What... the Ghost Pulse Technique..."
"In fact, this is the Ghost Pulse Technique, but resurrection of the dead is impossible, and mastering the Ghost Shadow Step will at most send someone to hell."
"..."
Wuxian was right. The Ghost Shadow Step could indeed move stealthily through heavily guarded areas, and the more heavily guarded, the more advantageous it became.
During Ghost Walk, until the exhaustion of Chi, the practitioner could hold their breath and hide Chi and their aura completely. However, the downside was the inability to communicate with external Chi, causing Chi to deplete quickly.
Although Yuanhui had been refining his physique and consuming various Chi-restoring elixirs in recent days, the results were not as significant as before. His bottleneck was the transition from Nine Hearts to the Limitless Realm, and to advance further, he needed to strengthen his body to perfection.
Despite having the Dragon Emperor's physique which did not show much combat effectiveness, his cultivation speed was at least three times faster than an ordinary person's. Continuing at this rate, he would shine brightly at the adult meeting in the Four Halls. (The adult meeting in the Four Halls was based on those over twenty-five years old).
"That's true, although I'm only in my early twenties, reaching that level seems distant..."
"No, it's imminent. After twenty-five, your training speed will increase by thirty percent. That's when the Dragon Emperor's physique will truly demonstrate its advantage."
In the Nine Hearts Nine Layers, each layer was crucial for honing a strong physique, reshaping the body, and strengthening oneself with steel-like muscles and bones was no easy task.
In the courtyard, Yuanhui, who had rested for a while, felt a surge of energy in his body. Sensing something, he stretched out his hands, forming a cross.
"Phew!"
After breathing out, he circulated his technique, guiding the energy in his body to circulate through a Grand Circulation. After completing it, Yuanhui felt like he was going crazy, his vision cleared, and a gust of wind rose around him. As the explosion turned his bones to powder, his Chi began to converge like the shards of a magnet.
This was the Transitional Nine Hearts period!
He was on the verge of a breakthrough, having made several breakthroughs in less than a month. He was close to the level of the Limitless Realm! Now in Nine Hearts, he could easily defeat early-stage Limitless Realm experts with a wave of his hand. If he reached the Limitless Realm, wouldn't even late-stage grand cultivators be insignificant to him?
"Haha, although it's not as easy as I imagined, it's almost there!"
...
"Haha, it's my first time strolling through the bustling market in the center of Capital. I've always thought there was nothing special here, but it's so lively... don't you think so, Senior Yukari?"
Juxi, despite being at the forefront, only realized Yukari had fallen far behind unnoticed. Realizing something was amiss, he quickly retraced his steps and found her under a large tree.
"There are too many people here, I feel a bit nauseous... blegh!"
Unexpectedly, Senior Yukari wasn't accustomed to such crowds. Juxi had to use his salary from the academy to buy some watermelons and handed her one.
"Indeed, the weather in Imperial City can be particularly hot sometimes, and activities only make you more tired!"
After stretching their muscles and enjoying a refreshing watermelon slice, Juxi felt an indescribable sense of comfort. His senses had become extremely sharp, was this what happiness felt like? The sensitivity of the body as a living being was increasing.
"I've never felt so comfortable before, this watermelon!!!"
Suddenly, Juxi's stomach rumbled, followed by a foul smell, making his face droop as he apologized to Yukari.
"Hehe, the effect was a bit too obvious; it must have expelled some impurities. Anyway, I... agh, it hurts... sorry, I need to excuse myself!"
Ten minutes later...
"Let's take a shower, have some food, and rest."
Saying this, Juxi and Yukari returned to the school dormitories, each going to their respective rooms, taking off their shirts, and taking a cold water bath in their room.
Since the academy was next to the palace, he often attracted challenges from other prestigious disciples, the result...
"Ahh!!!"
"So weak, are the distinguished families of Capital really only this powerful?"
"Mon... monster... I didn't expect to be so embarrassed, is this rural boy really just a Nine Hearts level senior?"
"Oh my, even Beigong Qi, an expert at the Limitless stage, lost the battle?"
