Chapter 4: Martial Body Refining Realm
Humans are born with frail bodies. Even though some individuals possess exceptional physical strength, compared to the other races across the universe, the human physique is the weakest.
This weakness is further amplified by the 'Heavenly Spirit Curse', which severely limits humanity's ability to cultivate. To counteract this, a special formation must be used to suppress the curse, while the Five Elemental Origin is harnessed to break it. However, breaking the curse is just the beginning—true transcendence requires overcoming the Heavenly Tribulation.
Even after breaking the curse, transcending the tribulation is an immense challenge. The destructive power of tribulation lightning is overwhelming, and a mortal body simply cannot withstand its relentless strikes.
While lightning protection formations can help reduce the damage, they cannot absorb 100% of the lightning's force. The remaining energy alone is enough to destroy a cultivator's body, leading to instant death.
Thus, before attempting to break the curse or transcend tribulation, the foundation must be strengthened.
The Martial Body Refining Realm is designed to fortify the body, allowing humans to compete with physically superior races.
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Xenos muttered, "To refine the body, I must always start from the outside and work my way in. If I do it the other way around, impurities will accumulate, causing internal damage."
He analyzed the twelve martial cultivation techniques of the hidden families.
"These techniques do focus on full-body refinement, but their methods lack structure. Their cultivation realms—Apprentice, Expert, Master, Grandmaster, Great Grandmaster, Transcendent, Apex—are similar to what I envisioned. However, their refinement process is chaotic, their breathing techniques are inefficient, and they completely ignore Mortal Qi… just vague mentions of 'energy' full of flaws."
Xenos shook his head.
"Forget those techniques. I'll create my own."
Sitting cross-legged, Xenos took a deep breath, calming his mind until he entered a trance-like state.
Within this heightened awareness, he instinctively adjusted his breathing, alternating between deep and shallow breaths at irregular intervals.
As his breathing changed rhythm, all the pores in his body opened.
At that moment, his skin greedily absorbed the Mortal Qi from the surrounding air, as if it had been starved for years. As the energy flowed in, his skin heated up, and impurities began seeping out—a clear sign of refinement.
For five hours, Xenos focused solely on skin refinement, letting the Mortal Qi temper his body from head to toe. When the process was complete, his skin had become tough as iron.
To test his theory, he picked up a kitchen knife and pressed it against his arm—not even a scratch.
Satisfied, Xenos pushed his body further, continuing to refine his skin until he hit a strange restriction.
He frowned.
"This... is the Heaven and Earth Limit?"
Determined, he kept refining his skin, pushing against the invisible barrier. The moment he broke through, another limit appeared. He shattered that one as well—only to face yet another.
After breaking through the third and final limit, he exhaled sharply, feeling his skin reach an entirely new level.
He nodded in understanding.
"So, there are three natural limits during skin refinement. I'll name them: Mortal Limit, Earth Limit, and Heaven Limit."
Xenos mused to himself, "I'll call skin refinement the first realm of Martial Body Refining."
He then turned his attention to the next stage.
"The second minor realm will be muscle and tendon refinement. Since muscles and tendons lie just beneath the skin, it will be easier to refine them and expel all impurities. However, the process must start from the base—just above the bone. If I refine everything at once, impurities might get trapped within the bones, causing problems later."
"Refining the muscles and tendons will enhance both strength and flexibility, making the body more resilient."
With that thought, Xenos began his muscle and tendon refinement.
Just like before, he encountered three natural limits—Mortal Limit, Earth Limit, and Heaven Limit. After breaking through them, he successfully reached the peak of the second realm.
Without hesitation, Xenos advanced to the third realm—Bone Refinement.
"A human body has 206 bones. Through refinement, they will first turn into Bronze Bones. After breaking the three natural limits, they will evolve into Silver Bones, then Gold Bones, and finally, Jade Bones—the pinnacle of bone refinement."
As his bones underwent transformation, his skeletal structure became stronger, denser, and more resilient.
Once he achieved Jade Bones, he moved to the fourth realm—Marrow Cleansing.
"Blood is the essence of life. Without it, the organs can't receive oxygen, nutrients, or fight infections. Refining the bone marrow will allow my body to produce purer blood—enhancing oxygen storage, immune response, and overall vitality."
Like before, Marrow Refinement also had three natural limits, which he methodically broke through.
Upon completing the process, he could feel his entire body brimming with vitality—his organs almost felt like they were celebrating their newfound strength.
Xenos muttered to himself, "Since I have completed the refinement of the outer layers, the next step will be the inner layers—organs, meridians, dantian, and the nervous system."
He continued with the refinement process, beginning with the organs. Since there were many, he divided them into three categories: the five major organs, the six visceral organs, and finally, the brain. Considering that the brain was the most sensitive organ and directly connected to the entire nervous system, Xenos decided to refine it last, along with nerve system refinement.
Focusing first on the five major organs—the heart, kidneys, lungs, liver, and spleen—he began the process of refinement. As he systematically broke through the three natural limits of each organ, he made a groundbreaking discovery: each of these five organs gave birth to elemental energy.
Liver (Gān) – Wood
Heart (Xīn) – Fire
Spleen (Pí) – Earth
Lungs (Fèi) – Metal
Kidneys (Shèn) – Water
This realization changed his entire perspective on martial cultivation. The body wasn't merely a vessel for energy—it was a wellspring of elemental forces, interconnected and balanced within itself.
"If I continue uncovering hidden treasures like this... it will completely change the way we understand cultivation," Xenos thought, excitement flickering in his eyes. However, he quickly pushed aside his distracting thoughts and resumed his practice.
Next, he proceeded with the six visceral organ refinements. Just like the five major organs, he found that five of the six visceral organs corresponded to the five elements, while the sixth organ played a crucial role in maintaining balance and creating a cycle.
Gallbladder (Dǎn) – Wood
Small Intestine (Xiǎo Cháng) – Fire
Stomach (Wèi) – Earth
Large Intestine (Dà Cháng) – Metal
Bladder (Páng Guāng) – Water
These five visceral organs formed a minor five-elemental cycle, mirroring the major five-elemental cycle created by the five major organs. The two cycles did not function independently; instead, they interacted and reinforced each other.
At the center of this complex system was the sixth visceral organ—the Triple Burner (Sān Jiāo). Unlike the others, it did not belong to any specific element. Instead, its role was to regulate and maintain balance between the major and minor elemental cycles, ensuring harmony within the body.
This discovery opened a new path of understanding for Xenos. The body was not merely a vessel for cultivation—it was a structured system of interconnected elements, perfectly balanced by nature itself.
After finishing the refinement of his organs, Xenos proceeded to meridian refinement.
As he scanned his body, he discovered the intricate network of meridians that carried energy throughout: 12 Primary Meridians connected to organs, 8 Extraordinary Meridians acting as reservoirs of Qi, 15 Luo-Connecting Meridians branching into smaller pathways, 12 Divergent Meridians that strengthened the primary meridians, 12 Sinew Meridians responsible for connecting muscles and movement, and 365 Collateral Meridians, which served as minor Qi pathways spread throughout the body.
Xenos pondered the complexity of this system. "There are so many meridians in the body, yet even in spiritual Qi cultivation, most techniques only utilize a fraction of them. This neglect causes some of the branching meridians to shrivel, leading to flaws in the body's energy flow."
He then had a revelation. "What if I create a cultivation technique that uses all the meridians? If I did that, it would eliminate every flaw in the body and allow for a truly complete energy circulation!"
With newfound determination, Xenos began refining all the meridians. As he did, they expanded, becoming more resilient and flexible over time. The more he refined, the more he could feel his meridians strengthening.
However, upon breaking the first natural limit, something unexpected occurred—his meridians began a transformation. It was as if they were breathing, naturally contracting and expanding, increasing their durability with each cycle.
As he continued breaking through the second and third limits, he encountered a phenomenon he had never anticipated. His meridians had now become so strong and durable that they could withstand the simultaneous circulation of three different types of Qi. This was a game-changer.
Xenos burst into laughter, his voice echoing through the chamber. "HAHAHA! I was always afraid of circulating two different types of Qi, fearing it would cause conflict within my body. But now look at this! My fears were completely unfounded! The meridians have evolved beyond my expectations… No wonder the heavens created such limits!"
With a deep sense of relief and excitement, Xenos moved on to his next stage of cultivation—dantian refinement.
There are three types of dantian inside the body: the upper dantian, middle dantian, and lower dantian. Normally, the dantian remains closed, and only a few gifted individuals are born with an open dantian.
The dantian is circular in shape and contains pores that connect to the meridians. These pores facilitate the transfer of Qi throughout the body, maintaining energy circulation. When Qi is not needed, the pores close, halting the flow.
The first step of dantian refinement is to open all three dantians. The second step is to expand their size, and the final step is to connect the meridians to the dantian, ensuring a seamless flow of energy.
Understanding this process, Xenos guided Mortal Qi into the inner dimension of his body, attempting to unlock the dantians. The moment they opened, they began pulsating, greedily absorbing Mortal Qi, while simultaneously expelling impurities.
As he continued absorbing Qi, the dantians stabilized, and their initial size was revealed—1 Shi Zhang (3.33 meters). Breaking through natural limits, the dantians expanded from 5 Shi Zhang (16.65 meters) to 15 Shi Zhang (49.95 meters), eventually reaching 30 Shi Zhang (100 meters).
After completing the dantian refinement, Xenos turned his focus to the brain and nervous system refinement. Due to the delicate nature of these organs, he carefully guided his energy, refining them with precision. Upon breaking through the three natural limits, his information processing speed, reaction time, and all five senses evolved—no longer resembling those of a mortal.
With the entire body refined, Xenos felt an overwhelming surge of different energies coursing through him. He examined his body carefully. Each part—the skin, muscles, tendons, bones, marrow, organs, meridians, dantian, and nervous system—contained its own distinct type of energy.
"If I leave it like this, it will cause chaos," Xenos murmured. "What if I merge all these energies into one singular energy? Since they all originate from the same source, it should be possible…"
With this thought, he created the final refinement realm—Full Body Refinement Realm.
Channeling Mortal Qi, he guided the various energies within his body, fusing them into one. Since he had already broken through the three natural limits of each refinement stage, the fusion was smooth and stable. As the process concluded, a completely new type of Qi emerged.
Xenos gazed at his body in awe.
"This… I shall call it Body Qi."
Now that he had completed the Martial Body Refining Realm, he classified the realms as follows:
1) Skin Refinement
2) Muscle and Tendon Refinement
3) Bone Refinement
4) Bone Marrow Refinement
5) Organ Refinement
6) Meridian Refinement
7) Dantian Refinement
8) Brain and Nervous System Refinement
9) Full Body Refinement
With the foundation of martial cultivation established, Xenos pondered, "The breathing method I used was tailored to my body. I don't think it will work for others. I need to develop a universal cultivation system."
Just as this thought crossed his mind, the tower he carried within him suddenly began to tremble, as if it were awakening.
Xenos took the tower into his hand and muttered, "It's been seven days… I didn't even notice."
At that moment, a voice echoed from within the tower.
"Xenos, how is home?"
It was Sumanth.