Chapter 20

A week later, at the Energy Concentration Tower.

In the quiet room, Luo Feng was cultivating.

Qi energy radiated throughout his body, more intense than ever before. Power surged from every part of his body to the surface, like a cocoon about to break free.

This sign was of utmost importance to a martial artist, a critical step in the cultivation of martial qi, which could not be taken lightly.

Luo Feng focused intently, sensing the fluctuations of the qi energy within his body with his inner breath. The Ancient Heaven-Defying Technique was also in operation.

This state lasted for nearly ten minutes, then a faint sound was heard. The qi energy surged out like water breaking through a dam, forming a layer of qi about twenty centimeters thick around Luo Feng, making him appear much larger.

True Qi!

That layer of qi was a characteristic of the third stage, True Qi. Compared to the previous stage, Essence Qi, the difference was that it could leave the body, rather than just adhering to the skin. It also provided the martial artist with greater offensive and defensive capabilities.

Luo Feng opened his eyes, his expression filled with unhidden joy. Advancing to a higher stage of martial qi was certainly a cause for celebration.

Moreover, it had only taken him a month to advance from the ninth level of Essence Qi to the first level of True Qi.

Previously, it had taken him about a month to advance from the eighth level to the ninth level of Essence Qi. For most people, this speed was quite astonishing. However, what surprised Luo Feng even more was the rapidity of the stage advancement.

According to common knowledge, the gap between the ninth level of Essence Qi and the first level of True Qi was not just a single level. It might take someone two months to advance from the eighth level to the ninth level of Essence Qi, and four months or even longer to advance from the ninth level of Essence Qi to the first level of True Qi, as advancing to a higher stage of martial qi was a major bottleneck.

However, it had taken him only a month to advance to the next stage, just like the previous level advancement!

Although the Energy Concentration Tower could enhance cultivation speed to some extent, it was not that powerful, and the time he could spend there was limited to just one hour per day.

This must be the work of the Ancient Heaven-Defying Technique.

The old madmen had said that theoretically, for the Ancient Heaven-Defying Technique, there were no bottlenecks in advancing or upgrading from the lower to the middle stages of martial qi. The transition was very natural. This had already been proven with the level upgrades, as Luo Feng had also encountered no difficulties when advancing from the eighth to the ninth level of martial qi. Now, the stage advancement was also smooth.

Luo Feng was increasingly confident in this technique, which was created by a group of supreme beings, as he was a firsthand witness.

Advancing to a higher stage of martial qi not only significantly increased one's strength but also changed the way one attacked. Luo Feng had already experienced this during his battle with Pierce, where the opponent's True Qi martial skills could be launched like cannonballs, preventing him from getting close and putting him at a disadvantage. If it weren't for Bart's timely appearance, he would have been defeated.

The quiet room was for cultivation and breathing exercises, not for martial skill practice, and the one-hour limit at the Energy Concentration Tower was almost up. Luo Feng stayed a while longer until the bell rang, then he left the quiet room.

He habitually glanced at the quiet room next to him, but there was no movement.

Hmm, Aaron hasn't accompanied me to class or cultivation for several days. Perhaps the incident that night made him feel awkward, and he needs some time to recover. I hope he doesn't think too much about it and let it affect his studies.

Typically, after advancing to a higher stage, a martial artist would perform a few simple tests to evaluate their new strength. Luo Feng was no exception.

He went to the training ground and activated his True Qi. Extending his right hand, he exerted force, and a ball of True Qi shot out from his palm, traveling about twelve to thirteen meters before dissipating.

True Qi at this stage could be used for long-range attacks, but without learning Blue Rank martial skills, the attack power was still weak. After learning new martial skills, he could better utilize its power.

However, Luo Feng was very satisfied with the test results.

Even among martial artists of the same stage and level, the strength of their martial qi varied. For example, some people's True Qi was more refined, which was related to their martial qi constitution and the cultivation techniques they practiced.

Among humans, when they first reached the first level of True Qi, the range of their natural force projection without using martial skills was typically between five to seven meters. The excellent ones could reach eight to ten meters, and reaching twelve to thirteen meters was an outstanding achievement, indicating that their martial qi was very pure. The purer the martial qi, the more powerful the martial skills when used. This was why he could severely injure Gavin with the same Arc Slash technique.

Purity determined the power of martial skills, but explosive power was also an important factor in martial qi.

The second test began. Luo Feng first launched a ball of True Qi, then continuously launched another without giving himself a chance to rest. He managed to launch eight balls of True Qi before his strength finally gave out.

At this stage, being able to launch three to four balls of True Qi in succession was considered qualified, five to six was good, and eight was outstanding.

After the two tests, Luo Feng did not perform any more, but stood quietly on the training ground.

About half an hour later, a "hiss" sound was heard. The layer of qi rapidly shrank like a punctured balloon, finally adhering back to his body, returning to the Essence Qi stage.

This was the third test, a test of endurance, which was related to the martial artist's martial qi capacity and stability.

If the results of the first two tests were outstanding, then Luo Feng's endurance was simply amazing. Many people could only maintain the True Qi state for about ten minutes, and fifteen minutes was already quite rare. Luo Feng, however, managed to last for half an hour, which was twice the duration of an excellent human martial artist!

This had already been demonstrated in his battle with Gavin. After a while, Gavin's Essence Qi began to decline, while Luo Feng could still maintain his peak state, giving him the upper hand. This was the advantage of strong endurance.

After the three tests, Luo Feng was filled with pleasant surprises.

Advancing to the True Qi stage was a major breakthrough, and even more exciting was that his True Qi's power, explosive strength, and endurance were all very strong. Once he learned Blue Rank martial skills, he might even be able to compete with many third or even fourth-level True Qi martial artists.

Evening was not a suitable time for most cultivation, as the efficiency was low, and there were few practitioners of the dark element. Therefore, the large training ground was almost empty.

However, in the darkness, a pair of eyes observed the entire process.

The eyes glowed with excitement.

The person Joanna introduced was indeed remarkable. According to Joanna, he only had the strength of the ninth level of Essence Qi during the promotion exam, and he had just broken through to that level not long ago. But in just a month, he had already advanced to the True Qi stage, an astonishing cultivation speed!

Moreover, his performance in the first self-test after advancing to the next stage was impeccable.

If a martial artist excelled in one of power, explosive strength, or endurance, while the other two were average, they would already have good potential. If two were outstanding, they would be exceptional. If all three were outstanding, they would be considered a genius. If two were outstanding and one was superlative, they would be a super genius.

He never expected that at this level, there would be a super genius with boundless potential!

He would soon shine brightly and attract more attention. He couldn't wait any longer and had to act soon!

Two days later, after dinner, Luo Feng went to the training ground to continue familiarizing himself with the use of True Qi. This was his habit. The Ancient Heaven-Defying Technique was not limited by time, so practicing in the evening was the best. First, he wouldn't have to compete for the training ground, and second, it was quieter, allowing him to think more clearly.

By the time his strength was depleted, it was already very dark.

Tomorrow was a holiday. He wondered if Bart would come to call him to Victoria City for drinks. He needed to find an excuse to decline.

Although Luo Feng could easily sober up using the Wine God's method and wouldn't get drunk, dealing with drunkards was troublesome, especially since he had lost control last time, and Aaron hadn't dared to face him for a while.

Just as he was about to return to the dormitory, a shadow suddenly appeared, shrouded in darkness, making it impossible to see its true form.

Controlling the darkness to conceal oneself was at least at the Dominator level!

None of the trainees in the training camp could reach this level, so it must be someone with a different identity.

Luo Feng was startled but quickly calmed down.

To protect talent, the training camp was filled with experts, and with the backing of the Federation, no outsider would dare to cause trouble here.

The shadow approached Luo Feng, and the surrounding darkness dissipated like a cloud, revealing the person's true form.

A woman, with a black veil covering most of her face, but her deeply shadowed eyes were very beautiful, making it easy to imagine that she was a beauty. If one observed closely, they would notice that her nails were also black, matching her all-black attire, making her look like a ghost in the dark, giving off a mysterious and eerie aura.

The woman slowly spoke: "Luo Feng?"

Luo Feng was very surprised. He had never seen this eerie beauty before, but she called out his name.

As if knowing what Luo Feng was thinking, the woman continued: "Don't be surprised. You indeed don't know me, so let me introduce myself. I am Lucia, the president of the Gale Trade Association in Victoria City!"

Luo Feng was even more surprised. Although he was from a small town, he knew what a president meant.

He never expected that this young woman was already the head of a trade association. This was truly remarkable!