Becoming a Five-Qi Grandmaster, opening twelve Heavenly Pulses, and mastering the Intent Realm would allow one to return the five qi to the Sea of Consciousness.
However, it is rare for someone to have mastered the Intent Realm without having opened the twelve Heavenly Pulses.
The reason is simple: to grasp the martial arts of the Intent Realm with extremely low cultivation indicates extraordinary talent and potential. Therefore, the Martial Artist's clan or sect will surely use all resources to help him open the twelve Heavenly Pulses and become a Five-Qi Grandmaster!
Such a freak of nature would have any power willing to spend huge resources to nurture, after all, mastering the Intent Realm and advancing in cultivation would almost certainly equate to a Five-Qi Grandmaster!
Martial Artists like Su Changkong, whose martial arts realm progresses much faster than their Martial Arts Realm, are almost unheard of!