The incense burner released a calming aroma in the living room, and the bamboo curtain swayed gently under the breeze. Through the arched doorway, Chen Chuan could see the meticulously pruned plants and flowers outside.
Occasionally, a cooling, comforting breeze blew in.
âI did see some things today, but I canât tell what they were. I didnât dig any deeper into them. I just steadied my mind and ignored them, like you told me to,â Chen Chuan said.
Cao Guiqi nodded in approval. âIf you encounter abnormal sights when you reach the Third Limit through the old method, itâs a sign that youâre talented. If youâre able to keep your mind steady and not be influenced by those abnormal sights, it shows that youâve passed the more difficult hurdle in reaching the Third Limit.
âThatâs just what you have to face, though. As you train, these abnormal sights will occasionally come again, but itâs not a bad thing. They can be dangerous, but theyâre also your training resources. As long as you can steady your mind and remain unaffected, you can polish and purify yourself, which will be beneficial for you.
âMr. Ding, bring us
the Studies of the Unusual.â
With a bow, Mr. Ding left. Soon, he came back with a book bound with thread. He handed it to Cao Guiqi, who motioned for him to hand it to Chen Chuan instead.
âThis book contains records of rumors regarding the strange and unusual things Third Limit martial artists in the old era saw. It was kept in the royal familyâs vault during the age of the empire. It also tells you the ways to deal with the sights. Read it when youâre free. Perhaps it will be enlightening for you.â
Chen Chuan took the book from Mr. Ding and thanked him. A brief glance showed that the book was written in a vertical fashion, and most of the words were written in a variant form of their current language. It was hard to read.
Fortunately, with the Realm Pass, he could scan the pages and have the screen display the text horizontally and make it much easier to read.
Cao Guiqi took a sip of tea before setting his teacup down. Then, he straightened his body and said, âYou can take your time reading the book. Next, Iâll tell you what you need to pay attention to while training in the Third Limit.â
Chen Chuan set the book down and sat up straight with a serious expression.
âFrom the First to the Third Limit, each of them has their own area of focus. According to the old era, the First Limit requires you to strengthen your tendons and structure your bones. The Second Limit requires you to activate your organs and nourish your viscera. Iâm sure that your mentor has taught you this before,â Cao Guiqi said.
Chen Chuan nodded at that.
âAt the Third Limit, you need to focus on accumulating blood essence and building a mental foundation.
âBlood essence is the vital energy within the human body, but a martial artistâs âblood essenceâ is connected to their mutated tissue. They can only nourish and refine it through special objects and medicine. Accumulating blood essence is of special importance. Usually, the amount of blood essence a martial artist has determines whether they win a fight or not.
âFor example, Wei Wushengâs body hardening. He focused on the accumulation of blood essence. His ability to reconnect severed limbs, growing back flesh, and returning from the dead were all due to him having loads of blood essence.
âThe source of it all was his heart.
âAs for building a mental foundation, it means to maintain a stable mental state at all times. Your mind has to become sharper and move smoother, thereby making you the true master of your own body.
âThe extraordinary speed and coordination Third Limit martial artists have is due to this.
âSince our thoughts change all the time, and our focus occasionally scatters, we need to train our mind to make sure we can keep it steady at all times. There are special methods to do it. The abnormal sights you saw was one of them. Thatâs why I said that they arenât a bad thing.
âNon-orthodox martial artists usually have a hard time steadying the mind. They can only polish their minds slowly through the crude, superficial way of multiple life-and-death battles. I have a technique here you can read up on when youâre free.
âYou can purchase matching techniques from Martial Valor University. Try all methods and see which one suits you best. You can even use them at the same time, since it wonât have any negative effects. If you adopt multiple schools of thought and broaden your horizons, your mind will become stronger.
âIf your mind has a solid foundation, youâll be able to control the growth of your body. You wonât lose your youth, and youâll live longer. Some martial artists donât even need to take medicine to retain a youthful appearance, even though theyâre already more than a hundred years old. Itâs because of this.
âThe source of it all is your brain.
âBlood essence and the mind complement each other. Itâs best if you work on them both at the same time. Donât focus on just one aspect, or youâll end up crippling yourself.â
Upon hearing this, Chen Chuan connected it with what he knew and sensed, and a lot of his questions were answered. A contemplative expression settled on his face.
Realizing that Chen Chuan was figuring things out, Cao Guiqi waited until he finished digesting everything and returned his attention to him. Then, he continued, âNow, Iâll tell you how to train.
âThere are only two methods. First, itâs once again medicine. The government, companies, and the university will provide you with the medicine you need, but compared to last time, Third Limit medicine is custom-made. There are few channels to obtain them, and theyâre really rare.
âYou were Green Satchel Pharmacyâs drug tester, but your contract with them is now void, since you reached the Third Limit. You need to sign another contract with them if you want more medicine. Itâs one way to obtain it. But companies like it might control you by supplying medicine to you. Thatâs why you need to consider it very carefully before making your decision.
âThe other path is one that is hidden from the public. I, too, am unable to tell you about it, because Iâve signed an NDA. Be patient, though. In two months or less, the university or the Resolution Department will send someone to tell you about it in detail.
âYou need to pick your future path carefully, but youâre currently at the stage where youâre just solidifying your foundation. You donât have to think about it for at least forty days. Iâll give you a list of medicines you can use to regulate and nourish your body. Just buy everything from the university.â
Chen Chuan gave Cao Guiqi a fist-and-palm salute and said earnestly, âThank you, Senior Cao.â
When the Resolution Department sent Cao Guiqi to be his teacher, Cao Guiqi was only requested to guide him to the Third Limit; he had no obligation to teach him anything that came after. Yet Cao Guiqi was still willing to give him guidance, and for that, Chen Chuan was truly grateful.
Cao Guiqi smiled and said, âYour path is going to be difficult, and I wonât be able to give you anymore guidance. Youâre going to have to walk down your path on your own. But Iâm older than you by a few years, so I can give you some suggestions. If you have any questions, you can ask me.â
Chen Chuan thanked him once again. Then, they no longer talked about the Third Limit. Instead, they focused on drinking tea and admiring the scenery while talking about the political situation in Central City. When the sun started setting, Chen Chuan left.
After sending Chen Chuan off, Mr. Ding came back and said, âYou have a great eye, Young Master. Chen Chuan is only eighteen years old, but he has already reached the Third Limit. The moment he did, he defeated that horrible Wei Wusheng. He might be able to fulfill your dreams in your stead in the future.â
Cao Guiqi shook his head. âHe has his own path to take. Iâve finished mine, and I wonât force others to continue it for me. Iâm willing to help him because fate brought us together and because he is a good person. Heâs worthy of my support.â
He took a sip of tea and said casually, âRemember not to tell him anything about me, Mr. Ding.â
The butler bowed deeply at that and said, âIâll keep that in mind, Young Master.â
***
Chen Chuan wasnât in a hurry to return to his room after leaving Motie Mountain. He drove slowly and admired the scenery around him.
After becoming a student at the main campus, he had been focused on training. Now that he reached the Third Limit, he was no longer under so much pressure and could have a rare moment to relax.
Chen Chuan had stayed in the university to train despite it being the holidays, but now that his problems were solved, it was time for him to go back.
With that thought in mind, he decided to go to Yangzhi City after a few days.
After some thinking, he sent a message to Wu Bei, Qi Gao, and a few other friends to tell them that he was going to leave Central City for some time. They could send him a telegram if they needed to contact him.
Once he returned to the Arcane Palace, he gave Dawncall some food and water and watched the creature happily dig in. Since he was going to go back, he couldnât just leave this tiny thing here. He had to take it along with him.
Then, he sat down on the sofa and took a look at the list of medicine Cao Guiqi had sent him. He compared it to the list he copied at Wu Ruo and Phantomâs places. It contained the names of all the medicines they had kept.
As Third Limit martial artists, they had stashed away some Third Limit medicine, especially Phantom Form. He had quite a lot of it in his storeroom. Because of that, Chen Chuan already had most of the medicine Cao Guiqi had listed. Based on the amount they had, even if he used them every day, he would last a month or two. That meant he had enough for until he came back from home. He would think about how to procure more once he returned.
He was still a back-up law enforcer of the Resolution Department, so he had to tell the department before he left for a month or so.
He could do that tomorrow, though. Chen Chuan didnât want to do anything else today. He just got up, set aside the list, returned to the sofa, and started reading the news from the niche channel.
***
At that moment, in the office of the vice chancellorâs assistant, Ling Jianxing watched the fight between Chen Chuan and Wei Wusheng on the screen.
A few minutes later, the video paused at the moment Chen Chuan stood by Wei Wushengâs fallen body.
Ling Jianxing had an arm behind the sofa, and his knees were crossed. His eyes were full of approval. Based on his judgment, it hadnât been too long since Chen Chuan reached the Third Limit. At most, it had happened two months ago, but it could also have just been a few days since he reached it.
From his check-in and check-out records, Chen Chuan had spent most of the past two months in his room. He had only come out to watch the tournament over the past two days. It was possible that he had been training hard to reach the Third Limit, and he had only done it a few days ago.
Yet right after reaching the Third Limit, he still possessed the power to defeat Wei Wusheng. Such talent was rare among Third Limit martial artists, and his growth potential couldnât be measured.
Just then, someone spoke on his Realm Pass. âWeâre sure that heâs a Third Limit martial artist now. What do you intend to do? Are you going to tell him now?â
âNot yet. Once he understands the real situation, weâll seek him out. He might not accept what we have to tell him now, so we should wait,â Ling Jianxing said with a smile.