The martial structure in this world was rather straightforward.
Foundation → True Martial → Grand Martial → Sovereign Martial → Saint Martial.
Each realm consisted of nine stages, divided into three categories: 1–3, termed Eminent; 4–6, termed Esteemed; and 7–9, termed Exalted. A rank-four True Martial master was called an Esteemed True Martial Master, while a ninth-stage practitioner bore the title Exalted True Martial Master.
Walking into the mass burial site of the Bi clan, Si felt as though he had stepped into the heart of a deadly blizzard. The chilling air gnawed at his lungs, each breath a torment, yet he endured it with a composed face.
At the center, he planted himself firmly on the ground, steadying his posture and shutting his eyes. His current self lingered at the first stage of the Foundation Realm. In his past life, he and Bao had dreamed of joining the Bi family military and rising through the ranks. Yet they could never pass the peak of the first stage, crippled by the irreparable damage the extreme yin qi had inflicted upon their meridians.
Now, the situation was different. That same extreme yin qi was precisely what Si needed to grow stronger.
This time, he did not resist the biting cold. Instead, he welcomed it, drawing it into his body as he would with ordinary qi. A freezing sensation crept from his fingertips, spreading rapidly to every corner of his being. His skin turned snow-white, his body stiffened like an ice sculpture in the fierce wind.
In this frozen state, Si did not panic. He channeled the yin qi into his muscles, imbuing the dark energy into his tendons.
Of the nine tiers of the Foundation Realm, the first three—still stance, imbued tendons, and imbued bones—were all fundamentals. One could only be considered a true martial artist upon reaching Foundation Realm tier four. Only then could the strengthened body, flesh, and bones generate qi, allowing cultivation to progress faster and more smoothly.
In the past, Si had feared such an environment. Instead of cultivating in a rich yin qi area like the burial grounds, he had sneaked into the Bi family infirmary, lingering around patients near death, their faint death qi trickling weakly. Progress was agonizingly slow, taking him a month to break into the second tier of the Foundation Realm, despite having once reached the peak.
This time was different.
Si stayed rooted, the wind lashing fiercely, thin layers of ice forming in a five-zhang radius around him. Even his body succumbed to the frost. Any observer would have assumed they were gazing upon a frozen statue.
Somewhere around four in the morning, his body jolted, as if a furious wave had crashed ashore and shattered a dam. Invisible shackles snapped, and a weightless sensation surged through him.
Krash!
The thin layers of ice shattered with a deafening crack. Si's eyes slowly opened, momentarily swallowed by darkness like the void itself. Seconds later, the blackness shrank back, leaving his normal circular irises.
"I succeeded in one night. As expected, this is an excellent cultivation spot."
Si felt his strength surge. Imbuing tendons with qi enhanced explosive movement, structural resilience, and kinetic efficiency. Tendons stored and released energy like springs, and qi reinforcement amplified that effect. Strikes became sharper, footwork faster, leaps longer, and bursts of speed terrifying. Energy loss between muscle contraction and impact diminished, allowing every punch to deliver the body's full power. Tendon tears became a thing of the past; rapid directional changes and heavy recoil no longer threatened him. Proprioception sharpened, granting superior balance and reaction speed.
"Imbuing my bones with extreme yin qi is what I need to break into the third tier. Considering the abundance of yin qi here, I can do it in three months… five at most."
Though three months might seem long, jumping from tier two to tier three of the Foundation Realm in such a short span was a feat only the nobility could accomplish, and even then with costly body-tempering pills. This was why Si revered the Supreme Art of Death: it required no expensive supplements, only places steeped in calamity and death, suffused with extreme yin qi. The stronger the entity that had died there, the greater the reward.
"If I can sneak into the Bi clan ancestral burial site, I'm certain I can reach the third tier in three weeks," he mused, a distant dream for now.
The site was heavily guarded; access was forbidden without close supervision. He would only gain entry once he became the Bi clan patriarch. To him, the resting place of powerful noble families was paradise. He could hardly wait a decade for the privilege.
"Once I reach the fifth tier, I might as well start cultivating a speed-type martial technique. If I can sneak past the guards, the benefits will be boundless." His eyes flashed with determination, fists clenched tight.
In this world, two factors determine a cultivator's destiny: martial legacy and martial techniques, each divided into grades: Mortal, Warrior, Champion, Hero, Saint, and Supreme.
Martial legacy was the core cultivation path, defining what powers a cultivator awakened and their ultimate ceiling. Si's Supreme Art of Death was one of the ten supreme-grade legacies to later appear in the Central Plains.
Martial techniques, by contrast, were learnable combat skills layered atop one's legacy. Throughout a cultivator's life, mastery of several techniques would shape the foundation of their martial path.
Access to high-grade legacies and techniques, backed by cultivation resources, determined one's future. Noble families held a decisive advantage; many high-grade legacies and techniques were secured within clans, while academy versions were mediocre at best. This steady output of experts preserved their power, wealth, and influence.
From the fifth tier onward, a cultivator was expected to learn a martial technique with each ascending tier. By the ninth tier, they were anticipated to have chosen their martial legacy. By this stage, it became crucial to have been scouted by a formidable faction or accepted by a powerful master, for the choice of martial legacy changed everything.
Si's knowledge of martial techniques and legacies, amassed over three centuries of bloody conquest, surpassed the combined possession of the entire Gan Dynasty.
"This time… this time, I will get it right."