One more catty, one more attribute point

King Qingyang, dressed in plain clothes, with his long hair tied back, had a tall yet somewhat emaciated figure. His deep-set eyes were surrounded by dark circles, and his cheeks appeared somewhat gaunt. Despite his physical state, his presence remained exceptional, the luster in his gaze undiminished, and the aura he exuded was tranquil.

At King Qingyang's side stood a black-clad girl with a gentle demeanor, appearing to be in her twenties.

She seemed slightly fatigued, carrying with her a rich scholarly aura.

But when she looked at Su Heng, there was a hint of displeasure in her eyes.

"My lord..." Upon seeing Su Heng approach, Qin Yi looked up at King Qingyang's face. Thinking of the man's impressive reputation as of late, the girl's expression became somewhat tense.

King Qingyang waved his hand, "It's nothing."

He was holding a white porcelain bowl full of medicinal liquid, which he gently set aside.

King Qingyang rose to his feet and slowly descended from the high platform. A smile graced his face, and he took the initiative to say, "I have some injuries that haven't yet healed, and I failed to welcome you from afar when I sensed your arrival. Please accept my apologies."

"Don't mention it," Su Heng smiled, "In fact, it's I who should apologize for coming empty-handed, and I hope you will forgive my lack of manners."

The two exchanged pleasantries.

Seeing that Su Heng indeed came with good intentions, King Qingyang let go of the vigilance in his heart.

Although the two had clashed in the Dragon Tomb Secret Realm, they shared a mutual affinity in character. Their relationship was not bad, but not particularly close either, as they had only met a few times. King Qingyang was somewhat surprised by Su Heng's visit and couldn't help but inquire, "May I know the purpose of your visit?"

"Hmm..."

At that moment, Su Heng unusually pondered for a while.

Saying something direct like "I'm worried you'll be in danger and I want to help keep watch for a while" was definitely inappropriate. On one hand, their relationship wasn't at that level, and on the other, strong individuals had their own pride. Being too straightforward could backfire badly.

After a moment of thought, Su Heng replied, "I've gathered some materials from Dragon Abyss that were passed down by the Demon Descendant, and I have many questions in mind. I'd like to take this opportunity to discuss them with you."

Being an astute ruler, King Qingyang was well aware.

With just that much said by Su Heng, King Qingyang had guessed most of the underlying reasons.

Having clashed with Su Heng, King Qingyang knew the other's realm was slightly lower, yet his foundation was exceedingly profound. Exchange and debate with an opponent on equal footing was beneficial for both parties' cultivation.

King Qingyang readily agreed, "I also have some collected texts here that could prove helpful."

...

Su Heng temporarily took residence in King Qingyang's mansion.

They translated the books they had collected from Dragon Abyss one by one, then picked out useful content to contemplate and absorb.

This process lasted for about seven or eight days, during which both of them reaped substantial benefits.

"During my combat with the Demon Descendant's strong, I felt there was some connection between the martial cultivation realms of humans and the Innate Divine Abilities of the Demon Descendant. According to these texts, this speculation seems correct," Su Heng said as he gently placed the ancient book in his hand down in the brightly lit study.

King Qingyang was still dressed in a black robe, looking in a slightly better condition.

He said, "The cultivation realms of Martial Artists can be roughly divided into two stages: the first stage is physical body cultivation, the second is the enhancement of spirit. The immortality of Earth Immortal Martial Artists initially was a Divine Skill exclusive to a royal family among the Demon Descendant.

"That clan was once extremely powerful, causing great destruction to humans of that era. But they were ultimately exterminated, their bloodline thoroughly researched and gradually evolved into a Divine Skill. Due to its strong survival abilities, more and more people began to practice it."

"By the time the Great Zhou dynasty was established nearly a thousand years ago, it had completely transformed into a demarcation of realms."

"Which is what we now refer to as the Transcendence Realm of Earth Immortals."

At this point, King Qingyang looked at Su Heng with a hint of regret in his eyes, "It's going to be troublesome for you to attain immortality now."

The stronger the physical body, the more difficult it is to cultivate immortality. Su Heng's body possesses the attribute of infinite growth and has become even stronger after integrating with Dragon Corpse Essence. While his constitution is formidable and his vitality robust like a dragon, it also means that Su Heng requires an immense amount of spiritual power to truly step into the Earth Immortal Realm.

And the accumulation of spiritual power relies on a plethora of natural treasures.

Hence, even though Su Heng has abundant attribute points, forcefully elevating his realm is nearly impossible. That is why King Qingyang made such a comment.

If he had not studied these records in detail, Su Heng might indeed feel disheartened upon learning this news.

But, having understood more about the underlying principles and essence of cultivation, Su Heng did not see it that way.

"Cultivation divides into paths of spirit and body," said Su Heng, "Upon reaching the Earth Immortal Realm, the body and spirit fuse together. While you gain immortality, further strengthening the body becomes extremely difficult. This path isn't necessarily wrong, but I don't believe it suits me."

King Qingyang sensed the implications in Su Heng's words. His eyes briefly flashed with astonishment and he said in surprise, "Do you intend to carve out your own path?"

"Hmm." Su Heng nodded, not denying it.

If it were anyone else who spoke such words, they would only be considered delusional.

But King Qingyang calculated and found that Su Heng had spent just over a year on his cultivation journey. Such heaven-defying talent indeed couldn't be measured by ordinary standards. Though the path was difficult, King Qingyang somehow believed Su Heng could make it through.

Moreover, this was a good thing for all the cultivators in the world.

One more path of cultivation meant one more thread of possibility.

Perhaps some cultivators, who had been stuck at their current realms for a long time, could gain new insights and revive their vitality after studying the cultivation technique established by Su Heng.

Thinking of this, King Qingyang felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

He clenched his fists, a smile spreading across his face as he encouraged, "The path tread by predecessors is wide, but it may not be the only correct one. In terms of innate talent and bone structure, you are the strongest I have ever seen. And you also have ambition; I believe you can achieve great things." Find exclusive stories on My Virtual Library Empire

Su Heng was very encouraged by King Qingyang's words, "Then I thank you for your auspicious words, Your Majesty."

King Qingyang thought for a moment, then clapped his hands, "In my early years, when I traveled in the Eternal Heavens, I obtained a rare treasure that nurtures the spirit and increases understanding. This treasure has been in my possession for a long time without a suitable opportunity to use it. Now that you, my young friend, wish to carve out a new method, it is most appropriate to use it on you."

He clapped his hands, and a message was sent out.

Soon, a maid entered carrying a red-wooden box. King Qingyang took it carefully and then handed it to Su Heng with great solemnity.

Seeing King Qingyang's expression, Su Heng also grew curious about what was inside the box.

After receiving King Qingyang's agreement, he opened the lid.

Crack!

A wave of coldness immediately spread throughout the room.

Inside the box was a translucent ice sphere the size of a human head; even in his normal state, Su Heng's body temperature was frighteningly high. Yet at the moment of touching this ice sphere, a layer of thin frost "crackled" to form on his fingers, a faint chill traveling up his fingertips.

Just this ice sphere alone was a treasure of considerable value, yet it was merely the container used to preserve the "contents" inside.

The truly valuable items were the several verdant, fresh-looking tea leaves inside the ice sphere.

"What is this?" Su Heng closed the box again, and the penetrating cold also dissipated.

"Enlightenment Tea." King Qingyang answered, "After brewing and drinking it, one can enter an Enlightenment State. Not only will one's spiritual power greatly increase, but it will inevitably unravel some perplexities encountered during the process of cultivation."

"This…" Su Heng hesitated.

Although King Qingyang didn't say it outright, it could mostly be guessed.

This "Enlightenment Tea" was probably prepared by King Qingyang for his own breakthrough.

As a veteran King, King Qingyang had been a powerhouse of the Dharma Realm for many years. If he took another step forward, it would be the Heaven-Opening Realm. And this realm was almost the pinnacle of where the current cultivation system could go. Moving beyond that, there wasn't much experience to draw on.

Demons Descendants and beasts of abnormal birth cultivate the body, while Heavenly Deceit and Earth Immortals cultivate the spirit.

What about moving further up? What kind of domain is it, and how can one stand tall within it, few people know.

Perhaps the current Great Zhou Martial Emperor had reached a realm above that of Earth Immortals, but he was powerful and mysterious, and the information that came down was too scarce.

Seriously wounded during his expeditions in the Eternal Heavens, he hung at death's door. Despite the empire's utmost efforts, even the medicines to heal his wounds could not be found. What sort of existence would his adversary be?

King Qingyang believed the Enlightenment Tea could help him break through, its value self-evident.

Su Heng was never greedy with friends. He shook his head earnestly, "This gift is too precious; I cannot accept it."

"There is no need for courtesy." King Qingyang patted Su Heng's shoulder, smiling, "If you can really carve out a new path in the future, just let me observe the cultivation technique you create."

"My martial arts are open to anyone who wishes to learn; I never hide anything." Su Heng said frankly.

He thought for a moment and then said, "I can give you a batch of Dragon Corpse Essence, to be used in cultivation, to recover from injuries."

Su Heng had refined about half of the Dragon Corpse; his physical body had already undergone transformation. The remaining Dragon Corpse Essence was still useful to Su Heng but not as much as before. It could no longer bring about a fundamental change but would only act as an extremely valuable food source.

King Qingyang, however, was unwilling to take advantage of Su Heng's generosity, "We had an agreement before; since you could take away the Dragon Corpse, it is your harvest."

"Then how about this..." Su Heng smiled, "I have a lot of Dragon Blood that is not much use to me; you can exchange it for spiritual domain medicinal resources."

This time, King Qingyang didn't refuse, "That can be done."