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  Ancient Fragment #8

  Even the strongest cultivators might spend years digesting knowledge too profound for their current understanding, turning it over in their minds as they sought even a fragment of clarity.

  Yet the path of cultivation was never without miracles, there were moments of sudden enlightenment, a single epiphany in which the heavens seemed to part and the truth revealed itself in an instant.

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  Hua Qingqing went outside, leaving Long Tianyu alone to rest and digest the information Azurythax had left him. She had also left him his pouch with him, thankfully her storage pouch had survived the abyss.

  Sitting cross-legged on the bed, Long Tianyu turned his focus inward and quickly realized that not all of the knowledge was accessible. Some parts felt sealed, locked behind an invisible barrier. He could sense them clearly, yet could not comprehend them at all. Instinctively, he understood that these fragments would only unlock once he reached a higher cultivation rank.

  What he could understand, however, already left him shaken.

  I already know that cultivation starts with Body Refinement Realm. After all I've been stuck at the third stage for many years now.

  But the knowledge given to him was more deep and detailed than what he knew from before.

  So Body Refinement Realm is the starting realm for the three origins, it isn't just a realm where a cultivator forge their body to withstand qi, but also a crucial step to strengthen the soul and body beyond mortal capability.

  The second realm was Elementary Qi Realm, also consisting of nine stages. At this level, a cultivator could sense the qi of the world and draw a small amount into their body, condensing it within their spiritual core. He knew Hua Qingqing had been the third stage of Elementary Qi Realm before entering The Godslaying Abyss.

  Long Tianyu’s breathing faltered as the realization struck him. He was already in the Elementary Qi Realm. A surge of overwhelming joy rose within him, years of stagnation shattering in an instant, but he forced himself to remain calm and pushed the feeling aside for now.

  The third realm was Qi Infusion Realm, a realm where the qi infused much more into the spiritual core of the cultivator.

  The fourth realm, Qi Exertion Realm allowed a cultivator to project qi outward, reinforcing strikes, enhancing movement, and briefly defying gravity. Only now did Long Tianyu fully understand how the third prince had moved in the air. It was not true flight, but to mortals, it was enough to scare them witless to see a human moving in the air.

  Further was the Profound Qi Stage, the person could absorb the world's qi without limit, amplifying it through their spiritual core. This is where a cultivator get true flight.

  Two great realms continued, Cores Foundation, Life and Death Realms were only the words he knew, and he couldn't see into the smaller realms within them. No matter how hard he tried, he could not see beyond it. The remaining information was completely sealed.

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  Long Tianyu turned his attention back to himself. Being in the first stage of Elementary Qi Realm felt unfamiliar, yet strangely natural. He had no clear understanding of his true strength yet.

  Without realizing it, his soul sense spread inward. He perceived his blood flowing through his veins, and within it, something vast and ancient stirred. The Nine Heavens Sword Bloodline radiated a calm yet overwhelming power. He did not yet understand its full nature, only that anything related to swords would come to him with far greater ease.

  Long Tianyu suddenly frowned when he understood why he had never been able to go further in his cultivation.

  I knew it! It never made any sense!

  So it was true.. That bastard..

  Before I was almost as strong as Hua Qingqing. If only that bastard, Gao Xiu hadn't poisoned me before the sect selections...

  He clenched his fists, remembering how deeply he had trusted the City Lord’s son. He had considered him a friend, but he had been betrayed. By sheer luck, Hua Qingqing and the others had survived the disaster, but Long Tianyu had lost everything. He had grown up in a small mortal village together with all of them and was only one step away from entering the world of true cultivation before fate twisted his life completely. The memory still burned in him, sharp and bitter.

  Without warning Long Tianyu groaned as a sharp pain shot through his head, like countless threads of energy pressing against his skull at once. The pressure of new knowledge forced itself into his mind, overwhelming him with the weight of revelation. His vision blurred for a moment as he struggled to absorb it all.

  First he understood he could cultivate a manual perfect for his bloodline, The Supreme Annihilation Sword Scripture. The scripture went into detail how to use the sword and specific martial arts techniques from within the scripture. Long Tianyu understood that for now he could use one martial arts technique, but he was far, so far from truly understanding it, The Blood Slaughtering Sword Technique focused on using the bloodline within himself to strengthen the sword strikes.

  There was another revelation, one that left him even more astonished. A cultivation manual titled Divine Tempering of the Three Origins. As soon as the title sank into his mind, a strange warmth spread through his chest, and he felt as if the horizon of his existence had suddenly expanded. Knowledge and possibilities stretched before him farther than any ordinary cultivator could imagine. Most people focused only on cultivating one of the three origins: body, soul, or qi. In Moondragon City, Long Tianyu doubted anyone even knew anything other than qi cultivation, much less mastered.

  The manual detailed how to cultivate all three origins at once. Each origin had its own methods, its own principles, and its own hazards. The body must be tempered to perfection so that it could bear the overwhelming force of qi. The soul had to be refined so that it could enhance the understanding of dao. Qi itself needed to flow in precise harmony with the other two. And if one were patient and disciplined, one could eventually combine the three into a single unstoppable force. The thought of such power made Long Tianyu’s heart beat wildly in his chest. The knowledge promised strength far beyond that of ordinary cultivators.

  Yet, alongside the crucial instructions, there were countless fragments of information that he could not yet comprehend. Some details seemed unnecessary for now, cryptic notes left perhaps as guidance for the future. Others seemed almost irrelevant, but the fact that they were included suggested that he might one day understand their hidden significance.

  Long Tianyu pressed his hands to his temples as another wave of dizziness swept over him. His body trembled with exhaustion. He knew that absorbing all of this knowledge would take time and there was no way to rush it.

  As he exhaled slowly, Long Tianyu felt a lot more calm and hopeful for the future. He and Hua Qingqing had just gone through life and death, through an abyss that no one had ever escaped. It was terrifying, exhausting, and exhilarating all at once.

  He closed his eyes and took a deep, steadying breath. The Divine Tempering of the Three Origins had awakened something primordial within him. He would master this knowledge. He would temper body, soul, and qi until they became one. And he would become unstoppable.

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  End of chapter 8 - Digesting the information