In a hazy, dreamlike state, Zhou Qing found himself engulfed in darkness. Amidst the void, he sensed the presence of his Martial Soul the circulatory system which then formed an incredibly vivid image in his mind.
What kind of scene was this?
The three-dimensional diagram resembled a seated human figure, but the internal organs were replaced with various natural elements, people, and tools.
At the very base, there was a vast, rippling river and sea.
Above it lay a coast and continent, upon which a boy and a girl stood atop a small tricycle.
Then came something resembling a cauldron, burning with raging flames. Above it hovered a chaotic orb formed by four interlocked Taiji yin-yang symbols, spinning ceaselessly.
To the orb's left, a farmer wielded a whip to guide a green ox plowing the field. Higher up, on land teeming with verdant trees, a woman sat weaving at a spinning wheel. The thread from her loom extended leftward along a road, winding upward, eventually intertwining with the clouds.
Above this "Weaving Maiden" floated a sphere of Qi, where a child etched stars into the air.
Above him rose a twelve-tiered pagoda. A stream of Qi coursed through the right side of the orb, penetrating from the base of the pagoda and ascending skyward.
At the pinnacle, it was as though a separate realm had formed. On the left were two broken rainbows, faintly connected. Below them stood a blue-eyed monk, arms raised as if holding up the heavens. At the very top, amidst misty mountains, an old Daoist sat cross-legged in deep meditation, flanked by a winding road on the right side, composed of twenty-six segments.
"The iron ox plows the land, sowing golden coins;
A child carves stone, forging through all.
A single grain holds a world within;
A humble cauldron boils rivers and mountains.
White-browed sage bows to the earth;
Blue-eyed monk supports the skies.
If you ask what this mystery contains,
Beyond this mystery, there is no greater truth."
Amidst the vast chaos, this majestic chant echoed within Zhou Qing's mind, forever engraved there.
At the same time, his Martial Soul the circulatory system merged with the white Qi orb at the diagram's center. Its network of blood vessels connected this surreal inner world, infusing it with boundless vitality.
"This seems familiar… Could it be the Neijing Tu?"
As the vision faded, Zhou Qing reflected on the technique etched into his mind. Comparing it to the meridians and acupoints throughout the human body, he realized this technique not only encompassed everything within the Xuantian Skill but also covered numerous channels and points it had never touched.
Ultimately, this method still adhered to the path of "Three Gates, Nine Orifices."
The Three Primary Gates: the upper, middle, and lower dantian.
These corresponded in the diagram to:
The "Ancestor Orifice" between the eyebrows (symbolized by the white-browed sage)
The Qi orb beneath the stone-carving child
The sphere formed by the four Taiji symbols
The Three Rear Gates: the Wei Lü Gate, Jia Ji Gate, and Jade Pillow Gate.
These were represented along the spine-like road in the diagram. They aligned respectively with:
The lumbar vertebrae (at the level of the lower dantian)
Between the shoulder blades
The occipital bone at the back of the skull (opposite the upper dantian)
The Central Three Orifices: Yin Orifice, Yang Orifice, and Central Palace Orifice.
Yin Orifice, also known as the "Sea Bottom," lies between the perineum and genitals where form and force unify into emptiness.
Yang Orifice, also called the "Spirit Platform," lies at the crown between the Baihui and Fontanel points where Qi and power unify into spirit.
Central Palace Orifice, or "Niwan Palace," lies between the upper dantian and the Jade Pillow Gate, and is the convergence of intent and spirit into void.
These nine orifices span the front, back, top, bottom, and center of the human body, forming a manifestation of the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams, containing the very principles of Yin-Yang and Taiji.
At this moment, Zhou Qing resonated with his Martial Soul. All his meridians were fully connected. Qi circulated freely, and soul power surged through all Three Gates and Nine Orifices. Explosive crackles, like strings of firecrackers, rang out from every bone in his body.
Seeing this, Tang San couldn't help but gape in astonishment. He muttered to himself:
"With the Xuantian Skill, I'm restricted by this world's rules I need to acquire soul rings to ascend to the next level. My internal energy, or soul power, is limited. I haven't even fully penetrated the meridians beyond the Ren and Du channels. I've only completed the small heavenly cycle.
But Zhou Qing… he communicated with his Martial Soul just once, and his meridians were all unblocked? All his orifices fully connected? That's simply unbelievable!"
Human meridians are inherently present. To "unblock" them means guiding cultivated soul power through each channel to complete cycles beyond just the Ren and Du meridians there by achieving the grand heavenly cycle.
And unquestionably, soul power refined through a full cycle is vastly superior to that of a small one. The physical benefits are immeasurable.
In his previous life, Tang San had heard of rare geniuses born with fully open meridians. He never imagined that in this world, someone like that could exist and Zhou Qing was the example.
All of this, thanks to his Martial Soul!
"So it's true here, as long as you have a powerful Martial Soul, it's like being granted a top-tier cultivation technique.
Even if they don't fully grasp the theory, even if their spiritual sense is too weak to comprehend the entire method at once, even if they accidentally misdirect their soul power.
It doesn't matter.
A strong Martial Soul alone can push a soul master's cultivation speed to rival mine. Some may even surpass me!"
Tang San now fully realized: the only true advantage of the Xuantian Skill in this world was its comprehensive foundational theory.
Why hadn't soul masters developed a similar system of theory?
Tang San suspected it was because Martial Souls were simply too convenient. They eliminated the need for deep contemplation during cultivation. Self-defense? No problem a soul ring grants a skill instantly. With such ease, who would bother creating soul skills from scratch?
"How about it? What kind of technique did your Martial Soul grant you? You actually managed to open all your meridians!" Tang San asked eagerly the moment Zhou Qing opened his eyes.
"A very powerful one." Zhou Qing wasn't stingy. He took out pen and paper and quickly sketched the diagram. Soon, an internal meridian diagram of a human world appeared before Tang San's eyes.
However, the figures with heavy traditional Chinese elements the white-browed sage, the monk holding the heavens, the Cowherd and Weaving Maiden were all replaced by stick figures. Zhou Qing didn't want to reveal his transmigration secret.
He wasn't sure if Tang San recognized the Neijing Tu.
Tang San, in fact, did not.
But he practiced the Xuantian Skill, a Daoist technique, and was familiar with the Three Dantian. He immediately recognized this as a Daoist-style cultivation method. Though he couldn't decipher the whole image, he could find corresponding concepts in Daoist terminology.
Just from the diagram alone, he could tell this was a technique more profound and complex than even the Xuantian Skill.
Unfortunately—
He couldn't cultivate it.
Tang San even suspected that without a specific Martial Soul to support it especially one involving the intricate circulatory system this method would be impossible for an ordinary human to practice.
In other words, without Zhou Qing's Martial Soul, he had no chance. More importantly, he simply didn't have the time or energy for it.
In the future, when his strength reached the level of a Titled Douluo, he might have the energy but by then, he'd already have cultivated Xuantian Skill to its peak. There would be no reason to switch.
In the end, Tang San closed his eyes and sighed.
"Martial Souls… truly are wondrous things."