Wu Jian sat in the middle of the cultivation zone with his legs crossed, hands forming a seal as he began circulating his chi. He took several deep breaths. In. Out. In. Out.

The battle with Sǐwáng Hou had forced Wu Jian to push past his limits. He had exhausted all his chi in that battle, and then he had dredged up even more than he should have been able to use for that last push.

Wu Jian knew he was lucky. Exceeding his limits like that could have resulted in a sequelae, but instead, it had given him the push he needed to finally break through his bottleneck. He had been unable to break through the last time because the battle of him against Hou Jingshu, Zheng Yawen, and Wu Yong had not been a true life and death battle that forced him to his limits.

Things were different now.

While the Asura Realm was not considered powerful in larger nations like the Xia Dynasty or one of the Three Celestial Sects, it was the pinnacle of cultivation for small nations like the Shang Kingdom. Only about fifteen percent of their cultivators reached this realm.

This was the stage where practitioners truly began to understand how their powers worked. It was also the stage in which cultivators who practiced elemental cultivation methods like Huǒ Shuchang’s fire method really grew in power. Wu Jian didn’t know exactly how Huǒ Shuchang’s cultivation method worked, but he knew women of the Ice Phoenix Sect practiced a cultivation method that involved generating nine ice crystals inside of their sea of consciousness.

Practitioners of elemental cultivation methods also tended to undergo unique physical transformations. Huǒ Shuchang’s hair had become a fiery red after reaching the Asura Realm. It was an indicator of his power. The redder his hair was, the stronger he became. Women of the Ice Phoenix Sect also changed. Their skin became icy pale, their eyes turned frosty blue, and their hair shifted to startling silver.

Of course, Wu Jian had never met a member of the Ice Phoenix Sect before. Father had told him about them. He had the pleasure of meeting one once. He said they were the most beautiful women he had ever seen.

“Are you ready, Jian Wu?” asked Hou Jingshu.

“I am!” he called back.

“Then go ahead and activate the cultivation zone! Just channel your chi into the array! That should be enough!”

Wu Jian took one last deep breath before he channeled his chi. It flowed out of him and into the array, which lit up with a brilliant glow. He heard a growl from his shadow. Yōuměi was with him, and she would probably cultivate alongside him. He wondered if she, too, would reach the Asura Realm. She had been stuck at the half-step for a while now.

A barrier sprang up around him, semi-transparent silver. It looked like a half-sphere.

Wu Jian had little time to pay attention because the air had become heavy. All of the medicinal liquid from the medicine river was flowing into the barrier, transforming into pure chi that he hurriedly absorbed through his acupoints.

All 361 of his acupoints were open, so when he began absorbing the chi, it created numerous swirling streamers of visible energy around him. The chi he absorbed was completely colorless, a pure white. White was the absence of color. He greedily sucked up all of the white chi into his meridians, purified it, and pushed it into his dantian to increase his reserves.

Wu Jian lost track of time. Whether seconds, minutes, hours, or days had passed became irrelevant. All that mattered was breaking through. He needed strength. To protect the people he loved, to reunite with Wu Meiying, to reveal himself to Hou Jingshu, and to get revenge on the people who had annihilated his clan.

And that was when he felt it.

His dantian exploded with power as the bottleneck around his cultivation shattered. The chi that he had been absorbing through the atmosphere was pushed back, though it really had nowhere to go. It slammed against the barrier and created ripples across its surface.

Space cracked all around him, revealing deep vortexes with a multitude of stars. Was this space? The vortexes sealed up seconds later, but new ones appeared to take their place. It was like the world itself was fighting to restore the spatial cracks his breakthrough was creating.

Several cracks appeared in the barrier, but a rush of chi from the medicine river restored it. Things would have been fine if that was all that happened, but shadowy black chi erupted from his shadow as Yōuměi also broke through. The chi was pushed even further against the barrier. It bulged like rubber about to pop. He worried that the barrier would shatter, but then it vanished, and all the chi in the atmosphere began dissipating.

Hou Jingshu and Huǒ Shuchang had huddled on the ground to avoid the debris that blew everywhere. They warily stood up upon noticing the energy emissions and spatial cracks had dissipated.

“What… what just happened?” Hou Jingshu muttered, eyes wide.

“I used to make that face whenever Jian Wu broke through as well,” Huǒ Shuchang said. He seemed amused that someone else had the same reaction as him.

“That… was a breakthrough? And to the Asura Realm? No way. I’ve never heard of anyone’s breakthrough being so overbearing!”

“You should probably get used to it. That’s just what breakthroughs are like for this guy.”

“Ugh…”

He’s not wrong, but I wasn’t the only one who broke through this time.

It was interesting that Wu Jian and Yōuměi were now at the same cultivation, but he understood the reason. Yōuměi had been unable to grow stronger because she was stuck in his shadow this whole time. He felt bad about that even though there was little else he could do.

Wu Jian wanted to test the power now flowing through him. He threw a punch with his chi activated and watched as tiny cracks appeared. They traveled several dozen chih out from his fist, cracks in space that soon sealed up. He then created a sword with his hand and swung. Space split open and revealed a starry night sky, though it sealed up within seconds.

I have a lot more chi than before, but my control is also much better. So the change is both qualitative and quantitative.

If he had been at the Asura Realm during their fight with Sǐwáng Hou, he would have easily been able to kill the man. It sucked that he hadn’t managed to break through before now. Yin Wuhan would not have died if he had.

No. I feel like I could have done something even before I broke through.

Wu Jian had neglected to use many of his techniques. He had relied solely on Nihility and to avoid attacks, but he had not used Space Folding or Spatial Blade. The idea had not even occurred to him during the battle because he had been using a sword. Had he used those two techniques, perhaps the outcome would have been different.

Why did I not use them?

Wu Jian could only blame his lack of forethought. It wasn’t like wielding a sword meant he couldn’t use either technique. He should have been able to incorporate both into his attack style.

There’s no use feeling guilty about the past. I can’t change it.

He would need to be more careful from now on, lest he wind up losing even more due to his own negligence.

“Congrats on your breakthrough, man!” Huǒ Shuchang slapped him on the shoulder.

Wu Jian smiled. “Thanks.”

His friend’s expression suddenly became serious. “I’m gonna have to work really hard now. I don’t know if I can beat you as I am.”

“Guess that means you should start cultivating,” Wu Jian shrugged.

“Heh.You’re right. Okay! Let’s see how good this cultivation zone really is!”

Huǒ Shuchang pounded his fists together as he walked into the cultivation zone, sat down, and activated. Wu Jian watched him as Hou Jingshu walked over.

“Congratulations,” she said simply.

“Thank you,” he responded.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but you look quite different now.”

“Do I?”

“Yes. Well, I can’t see your face, but your, um, body has gone through a lot of changes…”

Wu Jian became curious when Hou Jingshu’s cheeks turned bright pink. Even her ears had gained color.

He looked down at himself and did notice a few changes; his hands were smoother and lacked the callouses they used to, many of the scars that had lined his body were now gone, and he seemed leaner than before. He could see through the tears in his clothes that his muscles weren’t as large as they had been, but they felt more powerful.

This must have been a result of the second qualitative change. He did not practice an elemental cultivation method. It was different from Hou Jingshu as well, who practiced a body cultivation method suited to her Perfect Physique.

His cultivation method relied on achieving an understanding of the Dao of Space. The greater his understanding, the greater his power. Of course, he still cultivated like a normal person, but he had to contemplate the Dao of Space every time he achieved a breakthrough or he would never reach the next realm.

He looked up at Hou Jingshu, who was staring at his chest with a red face. Now that was amusing. This had happened to them the very first time they met, though it was unlikely she realized the parallels. He wondered if she realized what she was doing.

Probably not.

“Do you mind turning around while I get changed?” he asked.

“Huh? Oh! Oh, yes! S-sorry!”

Hou Jingshu about-faced. He made sure she was fully turned before removing his training gi, which had been destroyed during their latest battle. He discarded it and put on a new training gi that he summoned from within his storage ring. It was the exact same kind as his previous gi. He had multiple copies of the same clothes.

“Okay. I’m decent now,” he announced.

“R-right.” Hou Jingshu turned around and studied him some. He didn’t think she realized she was doing it, but she paid particular attention to his bare arms.

“Do you like my arms?” he asked, wishing he didn’t have to wear this blasted mask so she could see his teasing smile.

“Hyah?! Oh… no… um… I just… I was just… of course not!”

Wu Jian chuckled as Hou Jingshu huffed and turned away. Even though she acted angry, he could tell from her smile that she wasn’t. Perhaps she too felt nostalgic, even though it was unlikely she understood why. He bit his lip. How long would he have to hide from her like this?

“Um…” Hou Jingshu began.

“Yes?” he asked.

“Do you mind if I ask… how old you are?”

“I’m sixteen.”

Hou Jingshu brightened. “Oh. you’re the same age as me then. When is your birthday?”

“I was born on the seventeen of the Sixth Lunar Month.”

“Really? I… can’t believe it. Your birthday is the same as his…”

Oh, crap! I answered without thinking, Wu Jian nearly panicked when he heard what Hou Jingshu mumbled. He felt way too relaxed around this girl. It was causing him to say things he really shouldn’t.

Fortunately, Hou Jingshu didn’t seem to realize that he and Wu Jian were one and the same. She smiled at him and said, “Your birthday is just a month after mine. I was born on the seventeenth day of the Fifth Lunar Month.”

“I guess that means you’re older than me. Should I call you Senior Jingshu from now on?”

“I’ll smack you if you do,” Hou Jingshu said with a bright smile that belied her harsh words.

“What about Senior Hou?”

“That’s even worse!”

Wu Jian teased Hou Jingshu for a little while longer, but he needed to stabilize his cultivation base, so he eventually sat down and began meditating. He still had a number of pills that he had bought from Shēnyuān. They no longer had the strength needed to increase his cultivation. However, they would help him stabilize it.

While Wu Jian did that, Hou Jingshu began practicing with her new spear. He sometimes found himself stopping his cultivation to admire the young woman. She moved with incredible grace, like an experienced dancer, and yet there was a deadliness to her movements that few their age could match. He wished he could watch her forever, but he knew better. What he needed to do right now was gain control over his newfound power.

Huǒ Shuchang continued to cultivate and was able to go from the fifth subrealm of the Asura Realm to the ninth. It had taken him several days to reach this level. Unfortunately, his cultivation stopped there. He had reached his bottleneck and no amount of meditation would let him break through. He would either need to break through his limits like Wu Jian had, or he would need a pill that could help him reach the Human Limit Realm.

Fortunately for him, he had almost all the ingredients needed for such a pill already. Yin Xuefeng, who they had fought and killed before reaching the Qing Province, had been acquiring ingredients for the Three Layered Red Yin Yang Pill. They had pilfered his items and Huǒ Shuchang only needed one more ingredient to make the pill.

After Huǒ Shuchang left the cultivation zone, Hou Jingshu entered. Wu Jian sparred with his friend so they could become accustomed to their increased power. They fought for several hours every day, and during that time, Wu Jian discovered that while he hadn’t gained any extra abilities, his control over his current techniques had increased. He could now use Nihility with a lot more ease and it didn’t consume as much chi. All of his techniques now required less chi, and he didn’t waste as much as he used to, though they still consumed a lot more than the average technique.

“I think I’m getting close to being able to move through space,” Wu Jian said as he sat down and watched Hou Jingshu cultivate.

“You mean like what you do with your limbs?” asked Huǒ Shuchang. He was sitting beside Wu Jian and drinking a cup of desert ale.

Wu Jian nodded. “It’s much easier to move through space now, but I still don’t have enough chi to transport my entire body. I think I’ll be able to once I reach the Human Limit Realm.”

“Ugh, you’ll be a monster once you reach that realm. No one’s gonna want to fight someone who can appear anywhere around you at will.”

“Most people won’t even know what I can do until it’s too late.”

“Hah! They’re gonna be in for a big surprise. I would hate to be your enemy.” Huǒ Shuchang glanced at Hou Jingshu as the barrier came down and whistled. “Speaking of people who I don’t want to make enemies of, your little princess just reached the Fourth Subrealm of the Asura Realm. Ugh, and it only took her three days. It took me much longer to get that strong. Dammit. What’s up with you people from the Shang Kingdom anyway?”

Wu Jian shrugged as though to say he didn’t know what to tell his companion. He stood up as Hou Jingshu walked over to them and smiled behind his mask.

“Looks like you had a successful cultivation,” he said.

“Yes. I feel like I could have gone further, but it would have taken more time than we have,” Hou Jingshu said.

“So we’re moving on?”

“Yes. If at all possible, I would like to find as many ingredients to cure my father’s illness as possible.”