Hearing Li Hao's words, Li Muxiu was taken aback. He stared at Li Hao for a moment, then suddenly smiled, but there was a hint of sadness in his eyes.
"Throughout history, many things have been reduced to mere jokes. It's funny how so many people in the world are not as clear-minded as a child," he said, turning away.
Li Hao noticed that the old man secretly wiped away a tear. This was a powerful figure, comparable to the Sword Saint, and yet he could shed tears. What was he thinking about?
Li Hao wisely chose to remain silent. After a moment, Li Muxiu seemed to regain his composure and turned back to Li Hao with a smile.
"Earlier, I mentioned there are two methods to break through to the Zhou Tian realm. One is the Hundred Jiao Technique, and the other is the Zhou Tian Luck Technique."
"There are two top-tier techniques in the Listening Rain Tower. One can be perfected to achieve 108 Zhou Tian, while the other can reach 128 Zhou Tian. In the entire Dayu, these are considered top-level techniques. The only technique that surpasses the Hundred Battles Zhou Tian Technique is the royal family's Zhou Tian Technique."
"With 168 Zhou Tian, it is truly unmatched."
"Is it really that powerful?" Li Hao was surprised. Achieving 72 Zhou Tian was already impressive, but the royal family's technique more than doubled that. Did this mean the royal family was unbeatable in the Zhou Tian realm?
"Of course. Otherwise, how could the royal family dominate the world?" Li Muxiu said. "This is called exclusive cultivation. Apart from the royal family, no one else can practice or learn it. Otherwise, how could powerful families remain strong for so long? They rely on their exclusivity."
Li Hao nodded, realizing that the Listening Rain Tower was similar in that regard. Just having this tower was enough to ensure the prosperity of the Divine General's estate for generations.
"However, the more advanced the technique, the harder it is to cultivate. This means the requirements for comprehension are also very high. It's not something that can be easily mastered. In our Li family, although many practice the Hundred Battles Zhou Tian Technique, more people choose the other technique, the Tian Gang Zhou Tian Technique."
"The reason is simple. If you take five years to learn the Hundred Battles Zhou Tian Technique, but only three years to learn the Tian Gang Zhou Tian Technique, then three years later, the one who learned the Tian Gang Zhou Tian Technique will definitely win!"
"You might think that in just two more years, you could surpass them, but don't underestimate those two years. By the time you perfect the Hundred Battles Zhou Tian Technique, they might have already reached the Soul Inheritance realm. A step ahead means being ahead in every step!" Li Muxiu explained.
Li Hao nodded. It made sense to practice techniques suited to one's talent.
Otherwise, it would be like an elementary school student trying to learn high school material, unable to grasp anything, while those who progressed step by step would surpass them, wasting precious time.
"Since you have excellent talent in body refinement, I suggest you focus on the Hundred Jiao Technique to break through to the Zhou Tian realm. With your comprehension, you should be able to achieve it within three years."
Li Muxiu continued, "By then, at ten years old, you will reach the Zhou Tian realm, with a hundred Zhou Tian. Compared to your father, you would only be slightly behind."
"Is he really that amazing?" Li Hao was taken aback.
For an ordinary person, reaching full mastery of the Power Unification realm at ten years old would be impressive. In the Divine General's estate, where everyone was a genius, the standards were even higher, but a ten-year-old in the Zhou Tian realm was still considered a prodigy, right?
"If I remember correctly, Xiao Qi's talent is slightly inferior to Xiao Jiu's. He reached full mastery of the Power Unification realm at seven years old, which is your current age. At nine, he reached full mastery of the Zhou Tian realm, at twelve, full mastery of the Soul Inheritance realm, and at sixteen, full mastery of the Divine Travel realm... After that, that kid joined the army, and I don't know what happened afterward," Li Muxiu said, shaking his head.
Li Hao was astonished. This was truly a monster.
He knew that Uncle Lin was considered average talent, yet he was still in the Divine Travel realm at over forty years old.
And the geniuses... they reached full mastery by sixteen.
And this Xiao Jiu was even more talented?
Li Hao was somewhat speechless, but thinking about Xiao Jiu's talent, he realized that among the millions of martial artists in the entire Dayu, he was indeed at the top level.
"When you step into the Zhou Tian realm, while cultivating luck, you must also learn the pulse-opening techniques of the Zhou Tian realm. Your father managed to reach full mastery of the Hundred Battles Zhou Tian Technique and the Dragon River Divine Pulse within two years, making him unrivaled except for the royal family," Li Muxiu said. "In addition to the difference in luck techniques, the pulse-opening techniques are also important. Ordinary techniques only have one pulse per level, so when you reach the tenth level of the Zhou Tian realm, you will have ten pulses!"
"Medium pulse-opening techniques can have up to eighteen pulses when perfected, while high-level techniques can have thirty-six pulses!"
"Top-tier techniques can have fifty-four pulses!"
"The Dragon River Divine Pulse is the best pulse-opening technique in our Li family. Each of the first nine levels opens five pulses, and the tenth level reaches nine pulses!"
Li Muxiu looked at Li Hao and smiled, "Now you understand how big the gap is between top-tier pulse-opening techniques and ordinary techniques, right?"
Li Hao counted on his fingers and took a deep breath, feeling shocked.
Even at full mastery of the Zhou Tian realm, the difference between top-tier and ordinary techniques could be over fifty times. It was truly a world apart!
If both luck and pulse-opening techniques were ordinary, then ten pulses and ten Zhou Tian would only slightly surpass the first level of a top-tier luck technique.
The difference was simply incredible!
This made Li Hao realize how precious and important resources were on the martial path.
Ordinary martial artists without a background could only practice those common techniques and become cannon fodder among their peers.
And this gap would likely drive countless martial artists to climb higher by any means necessary, whether through networking or hard work, often leading to a path that could cost them everything.
That's why top martial artists had everything and were renowned throughout the world.
This path was not easy to walk.
"If your meridians are naturally blocked, the difficulty of pulse-opening will increase, which will slow you down. However, with our top techniques, you will at most fall out of the top-tier prodigy ranks. In the eyes of ordinary martial artists, you will still be an unreachable genius," Li Muxiu said.
In the Li family, many geniuses were born.
Having been in high positions for so long, they had seen countless other small families rise like comets.
Thus, only top-tier prodigies like Li Tiangang and Li Junye could attract their attention. The rest were just qualified members of the family, like many other junior members in the training grounds.
Li Hao nodded slightly, not saying anything.
"The fish is ready."
Li Muxiu lifted the lid of the pot, and a delicious fish smell wafted out.
He extinguished the fire and said to Li Hao, "Go ahead and eat. After you finish, practice here for a bit. I have to go out this afternoon. If you have any questions, ask me tonight."
"Okay," Li Hao replied.
The "chopsticks" he had peeled yesterday were still there, and the old man handed them to him again.
Li Hao mimicked the old man's actions, wiped them on his clothes, and then reached into the pot to grab some meat to eat.
This time, he didn’t find it fishy; he only enjoyed the sweetness and tenderness of the meat.
After finishing, Li Muxiu took the pot and chopsticks away, gave Li Hao a reminder, then waved his sleeve and stepped out, disappearing into the horizon.
Li Hao stretched and walked over to the techniques nearby, quickly finding the books the old man mentioned, all placed in the glass cabinet on the seventh floor, which helped slow down the decay of the books.
Of course, Li Hao believed the Li family must have hidden copies of these techniques elsewhere.
It was even possible that what was displayed were just copies.
Li Hao flipped through the Hundred Battles Zhou Tian Technique and the Dragon River Divine Pulse, but he couldn’t absorb them into his panel right away; after all, they were top-tier techniques.
He opened his panel, saw he had accumulated two skill points, and without hesitation, allocated them both to the Body Refinement path.
In an instant, a flood of information surged into his mind. After the first wave ended, the second wave came.
It took him a full fifteen minutes to digest it all, and his eyes lit up with understanding.
He opened the panel and saw that the techniques he had mastered had undergone tremendous changes.
[Name: Li Hao]
[Age: 7]
[Cultivation: Power Unification Realm, Tenth Level]
[Sword Path: Second Stage (Flying Stage) (Hidden Bow)]
[Skills: Sea Without End: Tides (Perfect) Falling Snow Sword Technique (Perfect)]
[Body Refinement Path: Third Stage (Myriad Forms) (Tiger Pressure)]
[Skills: Stone Skin Hundred Refinements (True Nature) Thousand Jiao Sacred Body Third Layer (Hundred Jiao Body Great Completion) Primordial Three Layers (Tongyou Body Great Completion) Dragon Cicada True Void Body Third Layer (Jump Shell Body Great Completion)...]
[Chess Path: Fourth Stage (5/10000)]
[Fishing Path: First Stage (112/500)]
[Chess Manual Collection: Myriad Forms, Tiger Pressure, Flying Stage, Hidden Bow]
[Fishing Manual Collection: None]
[Mental State: Chess Heart]
[Skill Points: 0]
...
His Body Refinement path had reached the third stage, and the Thousand Jiao Sacred Body had directly reached the third layer of great completion. At the same time, the Primordial and Dragon Cicada True Void Body had also entered the third layer, both at great completion!
However, what surprised Li Hao the most was the low-tier body refinement technique, Stone Skin Hundred Refinements.
Its level had actually reached (True Nature)!
Countless pieces of information about the Stone Skin Hundred Refinements gathered in Li Hao's mind. At this moment, he could already perform it beyond the level of perfection.
The levels of body refinement were similar to skills: entry-level, small completion, great completion, and perfection.
Corresponding to the skills' entry-level, dexterous, perfect, and perfect mastery.
But what was this "True Nature"?
Was it a higher level beyond perfection?
Apart from the Stone Skin Hundred Refinements, many other low-tier body refinement techniques were the same, all marked with (True Nature)!
Mighty Bull Strength (True Nature). Li Hao could feel the original flaws of this body refinement technique. He instinctively followed the insights in his mind and began to practice.
Power surged through his body, energy erupted, and his meridians bulged like cow tendons, gathering with his intent at his fists.
With a whoosh, he threw a punch, and the curtain on the pavilion ten meters away was actually blown by the wind from his punch!
The Mighty Bull Strength reaching True Nature brought him a power boost far beyond before, increasing its effect by four or five times!
Moreover, there was a feeling of returning to simplicity, with movements that transcended the essence of the Mighty Bull Strength, containing a hint of an indescribable, rounded momentum.
It was as if this was the true form of the Mighty Bull Strength!
Then, Li Hao began to practice the Thousand Jiao Sacred Body.
In an instant, the vast energy in his dantian began to mobilize, spinning like a windmill.
(End of Chapter)