Chapter 349: Chapter 184: Innate Origin
"For example, in the Skin Grinding Realm, Martial Artists use Herbal Decoctions to temper their bodies. While this strengthens their physiques, their bodies inevitably absorb some toxic medicinal properties.
"While most of these toxins will slowly dissolve and be expelled from the body on their own...
"...a small portion will remain trapped, damaging the body’s Power of Origin.
"The subsequent Muscle Strengthening, Bone Forging, Marrow Cleansing, and Organ Refining Realms also leave residual toxins in the body, further damaging its fundamental origin.
"By the time one reaches Organ Refining Realm Perfection, these residual toxins reach their peak, and the damage to the body’s fundamental origin is at its most severe.
"In such a state, opening the body’s acupoints becomes exceedingly difficult.
"According to the common wisdom of the Martial Arts Realm, if a Martial Artist cannot cultivate to Organ Refining Realm Perfection by the age of fifty, it becomes nearly impossible for them to open their acupoints and advance to the Puncture Realm.
"After all, by the age of fifty, too much of the body’s Innate Origin has already been naturally depleted."
"This is the reality of one’s potential in Martial Arts Cultivation."
Chen Cheng frowned at his words, lost in thought. ’Something doesn’t seem right.’
Shen Zhaoyi didn’t interrupt his train of thought.
After a long moment, Chen Cheng suddenly asked, "Elder Shen, when one cultivates to Organ Refining Realm Perfection, their lifespan increases to a hundred years. Doesn’t that mean their body’s Innate Origin becomes more abundant?"
"Heh, not at all," Shen Zhaoyi said with a chuckle and a shake of his head. "Cultivation in the Acquired Body Refining Realm strengthens the physique and increases lifespan, and while that is certainly related to the body’s Innate Origin, it does not make the Innate Origin more abundant.
"Instead, it makes the Innate Origin *stronger*.
"Every person’s Innate Origin is more or less the same. Barring illness or injury, and with sufficient nutrition, the natural rate at which it depletes is also roughly the same.
"That is why a person’s natural lifespan is roughly a hundred years.
"The reason many people who don’t cultivate the Martial Dao die prematurely in their forties or fifties isn’t due to an insufficient amount of Innate Origin, but because their origin is too weak to sustain their bodies any longer.
"However, Martial Artists who cultivate the Martial Dao strengthen their physiques, which in turn makes their Innate Origin stronger.
"If we were to measure Innate Origin in strands, a person could be said to have roughly one hundred strands from birth until their body is fully developed.
"These one hundred strands of Innate Origin are consumed at the same rate, but a Martial Artist’s origin is simply more robust.
"At the age of forty, if both a cultivator and a non-cultivator have fifty strands of origin remaining, the non-cultivator will often die prematurely because their origin is too weak to sustain their body.
"The Martial Artist, however, can continue to live because those same fifty strands are strong enough to sustain their body.
"By this logic, the origin of an Organ Refining Realm Martial Artist is naturally the strongest within the Acquired Body Refining Realm. Their Innate Origin is also the most powerful, allowing them to survive even if only ten strands remain.
"In fact, with a sufficiently robust origin, a single strand can be enough to cling to life for several years."
"I see. I have learned much," Chen Cheng said solemnly, cupping his hands in a fist-and-palm salute.
This knowledge was profound and esoteric. If not for Shen Zhaoyi’s patient explanation, Chen Cheng would have had no way of learning it.
As the saying goes, ’When three walk together, one can always be my teacher.’ Even though Shen Zhaoyi wasn’t an Innate Realm Martial Artist, he could still dispel many of Chen Cheng’s doubts.
’This old man is alright!’
’This boy is so young, yet his Martial Arts Talent is extraordinary. He is also humble, polite, and eager to learn. He truly has the makings of a hidden dragon!’ Shen Zhaoyi praised him inwardly, his opinion of Chen Cheng rising yet again.
Shen Zhaoyi had lived for eighty or ninety years. He was worldly and astute, a wise old man who had seen it all. As the top martial arts expert in Linji City, what kind of person had he not met? What situation had he not experienced?
The heights a Martial Artist could reach were not just determined by their Martial Arts Talent; their character was of the utmost importance.
Only through constant thought and study could one continuously progress.
Watching Chen Cheng, Shen Zhaoyi finally understood how he had managed to develop Saber Momentum at only nineteen years of age.
It was undoubtedly due to Chen Cheng’s incredible aptitude and his inclination for deep thought and learning.
’Even though that boy Zheng Hun beat me to it, and I can no longer take Chen Cheng as my disciple... Chen Cheng was first nurtured by that girl Qingshuang, and he has a close bond with that girl Qingyao.
’In any case, my Shen Family has forged a connection with this future martial arts expert. We should be secure for the next several decades!’
Shen Zhaoyi revealed a warm smile and waved his hand. "My young friend, there’s no need for such ceremony.
"I only reached Organ Refining Realm Perfection a little over ten years ago; I lost all hope of advancing to the Innate Realm long ago.
"Never mind me; in all of Linji City, there isn’t a single person with the potential to reach the Innate Realm.
"The hope of Linji City’s Martial Arts Realm rests on the shoulders of your generation.
"As for your earlier question about what a Half-step Grandmaster is, I will now give you a simple explanation.
"The Acquired Body Refining Realm only strengthens the physique. It cannot change the body’s Innate Origin, nor can it stop its natural depletion.
"But opening one’s acupoints and advancing to the Innate Realm unlocks all sorts of profound wonders.
"First, by opening the acupoints, the body can absorb the Heaven and Earth Primordial Breath. This replenishes the body’s Innate Origin, restoring it to its initial state of one hundred strands.
"This is precisely why it is called the Innate Realm.
"Furthermore, in the Innate Realm, since the body can use its acupoints to absorb Heaven and Earth Primordial Breath, the replenished Innate Origin depletes at a much slower rate than in the Acquired Body Refining Realm.
"This results in a true increase in lifespan, which can reach one hundred and fifty years.
"After reaching Puncture Realm Perfection, one further strengthens the acupoints until they begin to generate new blood, which gradually replaces one’s original blood. This is the Blood Transformation Realm.
"Every Martial Artist in the Blood Transformation Realm is a peerless expert. They can be called Half-step Grandmasters.
"I am merely an Acquired Realm Martial Artist, so I cannot say for certain just how powerful a Half-step Grandmaster truly is.
"After all, Half-step Grandmasters are figures on par with the Sect Leaders of Major Sects; they do not act rashly.
"Combat between Martial Artists tends to accelerate the depletion of one’s Innate Origin. Even for a Martial Artist at the peak of the Acquired Body Refining Realm like myself, an all-out battle could consume a vast amount of my Innate Origin.
"The cost is even greater for Innate Realm Martial Artists when they fight, so naturally, they cherish their lives all the more."
Chen Cheng couldn’t agree more.
As the saying goes, ’Even an ant will cling to life, so how could a person not cherish their own?’
’Those Martial Artists who reached the Innate Realm struggled so hard to live longer than everyone else. They probably cherish their lives even more than Shen Zhaoyi suggested!’
This trip to the Shen Family to seek guidance from their Ancestor, Shen Zhaoyi, had been incredibly fruitful.
"Thank you for dispelling my doubts, Elder Shen!" Chen Cheng said, giving another solemn salute.
"Ah, my young friend, no need for such formalities!" Shen Zhaoyi waved his hands again, then said with a hearty laugh, "I feel as though we are old friends, though we’ve just met. I’ve truly enjoyed our conversation.
"You have come from afar, and we get along so well. I must show some hospitality. Allow me to present you with a small gift."
Chen Cheng felt even more strongly that this old man was a good person, but it seemed improper to accept a gift from him for no reason.
’A man has to have some dignity, right? I can’t just be thinking about taking handouts.’
"Thank you, Elder Shen, but I have done nothing to merit such a reward. It would be improper for me to accept your gift," Chen Cheng said, feebly refusing.
"Nonsense, nonsense!" Shen Zhaoyi was extremely insistent, looking as if he was determined to give him the gift,
"You have honored me by calling me ’Elder.’ It is only right and proper for an elder to give a small gift to a junior.
"Please, speak your mind. Whether it’s a Martial Arts Cultivation Technique Manual, Elixir Pills, or some Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures—if I have it, I will give it to you."
Seeing his serious face, which showed he wasn’t joking, Chen Cheng had a change of heart about his principles.
"Take your time, my young friend, no need to rush. A Superior Saber Technique Manual, a Sword Technique Manual, a Muscle Strengthening Pill, a Bone Tempering Pill... anything will do!"
Shen Zhaoyi looked magnanimous, and from his tone, it seemed the giver of the gift was even more eager than the receiver.
Chen Cheng’s "principles" suddenly solidified. He asked tentatively, "Would a Bone Tempering Pill be alright?"
"A Bone Tempering Pill... Yes... I happen to have one."
With a hearty laugh, Shen Zhaoyi strode out of the pavilion and into the main hall nearby. A moment later, he returned with an exquisite White Jade Pill Box in his hand.
"This is a Low Grade Bone Tempering Pill. Please, just take it."
Shen Zhaoyi opened the pill box, revealing a dark red pill the size of a pigeon’s egg that exuded a rich medicinal fragrance.
It was, indeed, a Low Grade Bone Tempering Pill refined from precious materials, including the heart’s blood of a Tier Five Demon Beast.
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