Chapter 156: The Five Viscera Realm
Chapter 156: The Five Viscera Realm
Chen Mu closed his eyes, sensing the subtle changes within his body as the five viscera formed an internal cycle.
Previously, his physique, despite its refined Qi and Blood, had transformed into a solid iron-like state, but it was merely a robust body, akin to raw iron, providing only strength and durability.
However, upon entering the Five Viscera Realm, with the establishment of the internal cycle, his body seemed to create a small, self-contained world. Through his breathing, he could vaguely draw upon a faint energy from the heavens and earth.
"So, this is what they call Celestial Essence Energy..." Chen Mu murmured to himself as he felt the energy entering his body with each breath, being extracted by the 'Root of Qi' in his lungs, and then circulating through the five viscera as an intangible force.
Based on the descriptions in the ancient texts, he had assumed that the Celestial Essence Energy, which the Five Viscera Realm practitioners could absorb, was a tangible form of energy present in the air. But only after truly entering this realm did he realize that the energy he was absorbing was not tangible at all. It was, in essence, the 'Power of Heaven and Earth' manipulated through the Concept!
In simple terms, martial artists could only access and manipulate this fundamental power of nature by mastering the Concept. Upon reaching the Five Viscera Realm, they could gradually refine and absorb this power into their bodies, forming the Primordial Energy True Force.
These two forces were essentially the same in nature.
"No wonder they say that only by reaching the second step of the Concept can one rival those in the Five Viscera Realm. The power of the second step of the Concept is equivalent to the Primordial Energy True Force directly harnessed by Five Viscera Realm practitioners. The transformation of Qi and Blood into Primordial Energy True Force is merely a process of nurturing the five viscera with Qi and Blood and then using them to absorb the Power of Heaven and Earth."
"However, the Primordial Energy True Force, after being refined within the body of a Five Viscera Realm practitioner, is easier to control and more concentrated compared to the raw Concept. But the strength still depends on the quality."
Chen Mu shook his head.
Finally, he understood the difference between the second step of the Concept and the Five Viscera Realm.
It wasn't that his comprehension was lacking, but the people of this era didn't differentiate between 'air' and 'Qi'. They lumped them together and referred to them collectively as 'Qi'.
Chen Mu, however, was well aware that these two were not the same. The latter seemed to be a unique attribute and power of this world, permeating everything, and it was the very reason martial artists could become so powerful.
Chen Mu carefully sensed the changes within his body again.
"This Power of Heaven and Earth can strengthen the body, granting martial artists incredible power, and even unleash thunder and fire with a mere finger. But it cannot alter the fundamental nature of the body's cells."
Soon, a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.
He wondered if the martial arts masters who had reached the Bone Marrow Washing Realm or even the Blood Rebirth Realm understood that the human body was composed of cells. Even if they did, they might not realize that the essence of longevity lies in the number of cell divisions.
Five Viscera Realm practitioners could easily live past a hundred years due to their well-nourished bodies, which extended the lifespan of their cells. However, even with Bone Marrow Washing or Blood Rebirth, they rarely changed the nature of the cells, eventually leading to aging and death, with a maximum lifespan of two hundred years.
Of course, Chen Mu was well aware of this fact, but he, too, had no idea how to alter the nature of cells to extend longevity. Even with his current perception abilities, he couldn't perceive cells at that level.
"No wonder the legendary martial arts masters at the pinnacle, despite their immense power that could level cities and split the earth, couldn't resist aging... Their bodies, no matter how tempered, couldn't transcend the essence of being human."
"Even Blood Rebirth and martial arts mastery can't achieve immortality."
Chen Mu sighed.
While his future self might not be able to surpass that hurdle either, he understood some fundamental truths that many in this world didn't. If he ever reached that level, he would at least have a clearer direction.
For now, the most crucial task was to focus on the Five Viscera Realm cultivation.
Chen Mu had established the internal cycle of the five viscera and could be considered to have truly entered the Five Viscera Realm. However, he still needed a bit more time to accumulate the Primordial Energy True Force. Once he had gathered enough, the next step would be to 'temper' the five viscera.
In essence, this process involved using the absorbed Celestial Essence Energy to further enhance the five viscera, strengthening and increasing the Primordial Energy True Force they could harness. This would, in turn, elevate his overall strength.
"In the Five Viscera Realm, there is no distinction between major and minor achievements. Instead, one must undergo the 'tempering' process, and the number of tempering cycles determines the strength of the Primordial Energy harnessed by the five viscera, and thus, the practitioner's overall power. The number of tempering cycles depends solely on the depth of the practitioner's foundation in the Five Viscera Realm."
Chen Mu whispered to himself.
The minimum number of tempering cycles for the five viscera was three, while the maximum was not yet clear. Some practitioners had undergone up to nine or even ten tempering cycles.
The difference between one or two tempering cycles was minimal. Practitioners like Yu Jiujiang and He Wuyou, who had reached the Five Viscera Realm but no further, typically underwent three tempering cycles. Their Primordial Energy True Force might not even be as strong as Chen Mu's, who had just entered the realm.
Once a martial practitioner reaches the Organ Realms, the strength of their Conceptual Diagrams becomes the key factor. Even if one refines their inner organs multiple times, a stronger Primordial Energy True Force can be harnessed, but it still pales in comparison to the difference between the first and second steps of a Conceptual Diagram.
Chen Mu once asked Meng Danyun about the gap between each refinement of the organs. Meng Danyun replied that the difference between nine refinements and a single refinement is akin to the gap between reaching the second step and the first step of a Conceptual Diagram.
To put it simply, refining the organs to the limit of nine times, compared to someone who has only refined them once, is roughly equivalent to having an 'extra' step into the second stage of a Conceptual Diagram.
However, the more times the organs are refined, the better, as it determines the height one can reach after entering the Six Viscera Realm!
The strength of the Six Viscera Realm is closely tied to the number of organ refinements in the Organ Realms. The stronger the organ refinements, the stronger the Six Viscera will be. In a sense, the cultivation in the Organ Realms is primarily to prepare for the Six Viscera Realm.
Therefore, when martial practitioners reach the Organ Realms, they often linger at this stage for an extended period, refining their organs multiple times to solidify their foundation. Only after reaching a certain level will they attempt to enter the Six Viscera Realm.
Of course, there are exceptions like Yu Jiujiang and He Wuyou, who stopped at the Organ Realms. They didn't accumulate enough in the Organ Realms, but their foundation was too weak, and they ultimately couldn't pass the threshold of the Six Viscera Realm.
"The Six Viscera Realm..." Chen Mu murmured to himself.
As far as he knew, among the eight Body Tempering Realms, the Six Viscera Realm had the most significant gap between its strongest and weakest practitioners!
In the version of the martial canon he had, the numbers 1, 6, 1, 9, 1, 1, and 0 represented the Six Viscera Realm.
The weakest in this realm were those who hadn't even grasped the second step of their Conceptual Diagram and barely entered it. They would be easily defeated by true disciples of the Organ Realms like Zuo Qianqiu. Even facing Meng Danyun would be a challenging task, and they might not emerge victorious.
On the other end, the strongest practitioners were truly terrifying, like Yan Jingqing. It was rumored that his power could even rival some elders in the seventh realm of Body Tempering, the Bone Marrow Washing Realm. This clearly demonstrated his exceptional strength! However, both the extremely strong and extremely weak were rare cases. Most practitioners fell somewhere in the middle.
"Next, I'll gradually accumulate Primordial Energy."
Chen Mu extended his hand, palm open, and a strand of Primordial Energy silently appeared in his palm. This energy was nearly formless and intangible within his body, not affecting his physical form. But as soon as it left his body, it transformed, intertwining wind, thunder, and fire elements, manifesting the power of Wind, Thunder, and Fire.
Boom! With a light flick of his palm, this strand of Primordial Energy True Force shot forward from his hand, traveling several zhang before embedding itself into a piece of iron stone he usually practiced with, shattering it into pieces.
From a distance of three zhang, he had destroyed an object with a single strike! This was the difference between a martial practitioner in the Organ Realms who had refined their Primordial Energy and one in the Bone Forging Realm.
Even if a Bone Forging Realm practitioner mastered the second step of their Conceptual Diagram, they could only infuse its power into close-range techniques, barely extending its influence outward. At the very least, they would still rely on physical objects like flowers and branches to exert their power from a distance, and even then, it wouldn't be as powerful as using the Conceptual Diagram up close.
However, the Organ Realms were different. With a single palm strike, they could shatter iron stone without relying on external objects. Within a few zhang, their power wouldn't diminish, and the Primordial Energy True Force could manifest from any part of their body, no longer limited by their movements.
As a result, even with the Primordial Energy True Force circulating within their bodies, they could move through the world without being affected by external influences.
Additionally, they could go ten days and a half-month without food or drink and swim underwater for an hour without any burden. After directly drawing energy from the world, many of their material needs were significantly reduced.
In Chen Mu's estimation, he would need about ten days to fully accumulate and refine the Primordial Energy True Force at his current stage. After that, he would gradually refine his organs, and this process would no longer require the deliberate cultivation of Sinew Transformation or Bone Forging, as the internal energy would naturally cycle during activities like eating, resting, or even sleeping.
The Organ Realms were the threshold for true disciples of various sects to leave their mountains and venture into the world, and there was a reason for this. At this stage, they could either choose to seclude themselves for cultivation, comprehending their Conceptual Diagrams, or they could venture into the world, experiencing and understanding the natural laws of heaven and earth.
Only by combining action and stillness could one find the true path.
Meng Danyun's decision to leave the sect to seek opportunities to comprehend the second step of his Conceptual Diagram was because he had reached a bottleneck in his comprehension while staying within the sect, wasting his time. It was the most suitable time for him to venture out.
Gu Hong, Flower Shadow, and others had also reached similar points in their cultivation.
Furthermore, reaching the Organ Realms meant one had the basic qualifications to travel the world. After all, it was rare to encounter practitioners above the Bone Marrow Washing Realm, and for the Six Viscera Realm, unless one met an exceptionally strong practitioner like Yan Jingqing, they could at least escape.
If they had special life-saving methods bestowed by their sects, there were indeed very few who could truly threaten them.
(End of Chapter)
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