Chapter 148: The General Trend of the World

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Martial artists are divided into three levels—beginner, intermediate, and advanced—based on the number of acupoints they have opened. Among these, the third acupoint is located at the center of the brow. In ancient times, it was known as the Mud Ball Palace or the Purple Mansion and was considered by practitioners to be the foundation of cultivation.

With the flourishing of modern martial arts, there is now a profound understanding of the brow acupoint, confirming its critical importance. Therefore, martial artists must progress step by step: first opening the dantian acupoint, which is the easiest to sense the source power; next, the heart acupoint.

Only after years of accumulation and refinement can one attempt to open the brow acupoint, ensuring greater safety and a higher chance of success. In the past, many martial artists encountered accidents when attempting to open this acupoint, sometimes blowing their brains apart.

Though martial arts techniques are now mature, opening the brow acupoint still carries certain risks. After all, it involves guiding source power to converge in the brain, whose neural center is complex and fragile—any misstep can lead to disaster.

Gao Wu, having condensed his second acupoint with the technique “Regret of the Soaring Dragon,” was not in a hurry to condense the third. With his innate aptitude rising, he needed to calm his mind and steadily refine his source power, solidifying his foundation.

Suddenly, the spontaneous awakening of the “Dragon’s Roar to the Ninth Heaven” caused his brow acupoint to open naturally. Everything came about smoothly and naturally; he no longer deliberately suppressed it.

In a resonant state, Song Mingyue was even able to assist him in guiding the source power. It should be noted that Song Mingyue’s source power had surpassed the level of a junior martial artist, far exceeding his own.

With Song Mingyue’s help to guide and organize the source power, along with the intertwining resonance of her Cold Nether Sky Serpent and his Azure Dragon, the white serpent and the green dragon danced and spiraled, like a vortex continuously drawing source power from the void to fashion the acupoint.

At this stage, the work was more like a slow grind, requiring patience.

Though the dragon and serpent dance was exquisite, it was not a secret technique from the “Nine Dragon Forms.” Gao Wu’s intuition was sharp; he knew he had to select a secret technique to serve as the foundation of the acupoint, to define the nature of the source power in this acupoint.

The “Swimming Dragon Leaping Abyss” was too superficial and direct, unsuitable for forging the brow acupoint. “Regret of the Soaring Dragon” was excellent but somewhat incompatible. The “Dragon’s Roar to the Ninth Heaven” was vigorous and domineering but also unsuitable.

Only the “Hidden Dragon, Do Not Use” technique, where all vitality is concealed in the dark depths, slowly accumulating power for the moment of ascent, matched the intended mood and transformation for the brow acupoint.

With this in mind, Gao Wu watched the Azure Dragon curl into a coil, enveloping the white serpent within, symbolizing the union of yin and yang in the dragon-serpent’s shared slumber.

Song Mingyue’s spiritual power was indeed strong. After accompanying Gao Wu in resonance for more than three hours, she confirmed that his acupoint was completely stable before withdrawing her spiritual energy.

Deep within Gao Wu’s brow acupoint, a faint tremor passed through as the eight-pointed star-shaped azure divine light slowly contracted inward until it vanished without light, shadow, or form.

Within the depths of the brow acupoint, the Azure Dragon coiled like one asleep, slowly breathing in and out source power in a process that was extraordinarily subtle and entirely concealed by the other two acupoints.

This was the true brilliance of the “Hidden Dragon, Do Not Use” technique.

When Gao Wu awakened from his meditation, he saw a pair of clear, bright eyes gazing at him in the dimness. Upon noticing his awakening, a trace of joy appeared in those bright eyes.

Compared to condensing acupoints, Gao Wu preferred the feeling of being cared for and protected by someone.

Acupoints could be condensed sooner or later, but finding a beloved who holds you in their heart and whom you hold dear was exceedingly rare.

Song was even more profound; their spirits resonated on the same frequency, promoting each other’s martial progress, inseparable in life, sharing births and deaths, facing adversity together. What more could one ask for in a beloved?

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Gao Wu pondered briefly and realized there was still room for improvement—perhaps if she were just a bit more uninhibited…

“Mission accomplished!” Gao Wu laughed heartily and jumped in front of Song Mingyue. Before she could react, he embraced her and planted a deep kiss.

Song Mingyue nervously closed her bright eyes, her long eyelashes trembling slightly with her emotions.

“Are you nervous?” Gao Wu asked with concern, leaning so close their lips nearly touched. “What’s there to be nervous about? Kissing won’t make you pregnant.”

Song Mingyue blushed deeply, a mixture of shyness and amusement coloring her face.

“Oh, so you’re not nervous—you’re actually excited, right?” Gao Wu teased, finding her reaction delightful and wanting to provoke her more.

“I… I’m not…” Song Mingyue knew he was joking but couldn’t help quietly defending herself.

Seeing her as red as a cooked prawn, Gao Wu softened. “Alright, I’m done. You should go rest well. See you tomorrow.”

When Gao Wu pulled away, Song Mingyue breathed a sigh of relief but felt a hint of disappointment.

She instinctively resisted close physical contact, yet Gao Wu was an exception. But his constant teasing made her uncomfortable.

She preferred quiet moments—sharing tea, reading, walking, training—without overt intimacy, which felt far more intimate than any physical touch. Gao Wu, however, seemed to enjoy playful roughhousing like two monkeys.

Back in his bedroom, Gao Wu took a quick shower, changed into pajamas, then lay on his bed to open the “Infinite Merits” book.

Opening the third acupoint hadn’t changed his five basic attributes…

That was expected; his basic attributes were already very high, with even his weakest agility and strength surpassing the advanced martial artist level.

Opening three acupoints only elevated him to advanced warrior status.

With the three acupoints jointly breathing source power, his cultivation efficiency increased manyfold, as did his combat output.

Martial artists strengthen themselves step by step by nourishing their body and spirit with source power—a gradual process.

Most medicines compensate for weaknesses or stimulate latent potential, but these usually require cooperation with source power and secret techniques.

His reckless use of medicines at the martial artist level was a special case.

His physical attributes wouldn’t change significantly in the short term unless he unleashed a divine spell to further enhance his body.

Gao Wu then activated his Yin Spirit to observe the source acupoint; the azure light of his brow acupoint shone bright and pure, noticeably more radiant than the other two combined.

This acupoint was extremely subtle; even when he activated source power, it was channeled through the other two acupoints to mask any fluctuations.

He sensed the source power concentrated in the brow acupoint was more than triple that of the heart acupoint, which itself held about two thousand units; the brow acupoint’s source power exceeded six thousand.

Altogether, the three acupoints held nearly ten thousand units of source power.

Though the academy had specialized testing equipment, Gao Wu was reluctant to use it, fearing the data would remain and he lacked the authority to delete it.

There was no need for such precise measurement; he understood his condition well enough.

Comparing himself laterally to Wan Canglong, Gao Wu’s source power level was certainly not inferior—in fact, slightly higher.

His spiritual strength surpassed Wan Canglong’s, and their martial cultivation was roughly equal.

The only disparity was that Gao Wu had yet to manifest the Martial God Aspect externally and lacked experience fighting top-tier martial artists.

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However, his Yin Spirit sword control compensated for this shortfall.

Though he lacked warrior-tier battle armor, the Destiny Sword made up for the equipment gap.

Overall, in normal condition, he could contend with ordinary warriors, and at peak performance, he could spar with martial arts masters.

Nevertheless, biochemical armor was formidable, amplifying a warrior’s strength several times over. Warriors often possessed their own trump cards and burst techniques.

If they were followers of the Demon God, they wielded even more devious methods.

Gao Wu’s cultivation was currently solid; he could handle warrior-level opponents but had to be extremely cautious against martial artists.

He considered acquiring some adamantine medicines to strengthen his body, but since he was in the delicate phase of guiding source power to permeate his body after opening the third acupoint, using medicines was inadvisable.

The Dragon Claw Peak trial was only a few days away, and he felt the need to prepare thoroughly.

He was not paranoid; the current situation was unstable, and who knew what unexpected troubles might arise.

Short-term cultivation leaps were impossible; he had to find other ways to improve.

The academy granted him ten thousand credits, exchangeable for resources like high-grade ginseng oral liquid and other special medicines—life-saving in critical moments.

The next morning, Gao Wu felt a clear difference.

The “Hidden Dragon, Do Not Use” technique combined with the brow acupoint granted him deeper sleep, filling every cell with vibrant vitality.

This was not excitation but the body growing robustly, steadily, and naturally.

Thanks to his strong physique, he had injected various medicines, which left traces within his body but did not affect his health.

However, as his cultivation advanced, these tiny residual medicines accumulated like fine dust, gradually becoming blockages.

It was like tiny gravel on a highway—seemingly harmless to vehicles but continually damaging the road.

That night’s deep sleep resolved some of these accumulations. Over time, deep sleep would continue cleansing internally and externally, subtly transforming his physical condition.

Gao Wu was very satisfied with this.

With a few days remaining, he chose to spend time at the Nine Limits of Heaven, a sealed secret realm where he could freely experiment with his powers without fear of leaks.

On September 30th, a long line of large passenger buses slowly crossed the Dragon Gate Bridge, drawing the gaze of passersby.

A black-clad elder quietly observed the convoy with a faint, mysterious smile. Beside him stood a middle-aged man with a respectful expression.

The elder whispered, “Forget the others; that one named Gao Wu must be killed. Capturing him alive would be best…”

The middle-aged man replied respectfully, “The High Priest himself is presiding this time; failure is impossible.”

“They know we’re coming, and we know they are prepared. Let’s see who has the greater skill.”

The elder said calmly, “Even if Song Xuetao comes, he won’t return!”

“This world will soon merge with the otherworld, and the light of the Divine Lord will shine upon all. This is the inevitable trend. Those who resist this tide of history will be swept away…”

At this, the elder sneered coldly. “Human civilization is but a few thousand years old, unable to venture beyond the star systems, ignorant even of the soul’s nature. Such ignorant beings are absurdly arrogant—truly laughable!”