Bottomless

As he stared at the azure skies above, he felt relaxed, as if he had just taken a sip of cold water after trekking through a scorching desert, a refreshing smile on his face.

He had broken through. Seventh-level Peak-Stage Qi Condensation. Twenty-eight meridians opened. 

He released a heavy sigh and thought,'Great, were making progress, now I should be able to get some rest–' 

"Don't get too relaxed," cautioned a spiraling wisp of grey mist before morphing into a gray-haired old man adorned in tattered robes, crushing Zhihui's dreams of rest. 

'The rate at which he's progressing..at this young age..' the old man thought, raising his brow at Zhihui. 

'He's like a bottomless pit.'

In Lusus, breaking into higher realms of Qi condensation required an immense amount of vital energy. 

Depleting the body through practice and training helped In absorbing the energy of heaven and earth, but there was a limit to how much this could be done each day, as there was a limit to how much Qi practitioners could absorb. 

The speed and quantity of heaven and earth energy one could absorb at a time is what determined their latent talent. 

After the strenuous practice Zhihui had just undergone, an average Qi condensation cultivator would be fully exhausted and unable to absorb any more vital essence. 

Unless one had medicinal baths and meat from a demonic beast to restore the yang and soothe the yin, they would be out for days. 

Oddly, Zhihui's present demeanour mirrored that of a cheetah pausing mid-jog, as if the earlier practice had been nothing more than a leisurely warm-up.

On top of that, his body continued absorbing without ceasing.

The old man had initially attributed this phenomenon to Zhihui's unique physique, but at this moment, he wasn't entirely certain. There were just too many strange things about him.

At only six years old, possessing a robust physique with martial arts talent was one thing, but combining it with exceptional intelligence and a strong soul was another level entirely.

"Is this truly luck?" The old man muttered under his breath, rubbing his chin as he contemplated. 

Within Zhihui's mental space, a figure bearing a striking resemblance to him emerged, lips curled with dark-blue eyes swirling in a whirlpool-like manner.

"Heheh." a low, maniacal laugh escaped through its arrogant smile. 

"We'll do another lap soon, but while you rest..right..the story.." the old man trailed off absentmindedly. 

Zhihui turned his gaze upward, meeting eyes with the elderly man, a tired expression on his face. He let out a big sigh, the type that comes after years of hard work. 

The sun was low in the sky, providing a warm, golden light across the horizon, signaling the approaching dusk. Despite the impending nightfall, Zhihui realized he had a long way to go.

The mild air brought a whisper from his lips. "When will this end?" The words remained in the air, like a question he didn't want to know the answer to.

Time flew, and months went by.

Zhihui was by the lake, legs crossed in a lotus stance. A serene expression across his face, he gazed intently at the azure blue waters before standing up slowly. 

He was still dressed in his old beggar garments, which were gray with numerous tears and appeared ancient and withered. His destitute look starkly contrasted with his suddenly more lifely aura, ocean eyes more sharpened.

 Only his long, raven hair appeared to get messier over time.

'Spiritual energy huh, Dantian...'' Zhihui reflected. In his perspective, what his teacher referred to as spiritual energy was comparable to personal Qi; cultivators would receive energy from heaven and earth–the world around them, which would then be processed in the dantian and stored as spiritual energy. 

"It's like an energy centre.. If my meridians are the channels through which a river flows then the dantian is like the source of the river? Or something?" Zhihui questioned, rubbing his chin in thought as he made his way deeper into the forest.

"That reminds me, the core I took from that bear.. Is it some sort of dantian for beasts? If so it makes sense.. And I should've been able to absorb it somehow.. That geezer."

Remembering his stolen spoils of war, he heaved a deep sigh and then closed his eyes.

His mind focused on the techniques imprinted in his memories by the old man. The transfer of knowledge, once surprising, now excited him. 

Zhihui began to draw spiritual energy, feeling a warm liquid coursing through his cells from his abdomen to his right hand. Grey Qi enveloped his hand, thickening with each infusion of spiritual energy.

He raised his hand, now vibrating with an intense grey hue, and pointed it at a nearby tree. 

"Wandering beggar arts – Rich Beggar" 

His palm came alive, a ghostly grey replica shooting forth with incredible speed. The wind howled as it collided with the tree, imprinting a deep handprint before vanishing. 

Suddenly, the tree erupted from within, splintering apart with an echoing boom.

Shards of bark and wood shot outwards like shrapnel, scattering in all directions. The surrounding foliage quivered as shockwaves reverberated through the once-quiet forest.

As the dust cleared, the state of the tree was revealed.

The tree was no more.

All that remained was a small crater surrounded by upturned dirt, exposing the roots that hadn't escaped the onslaught.

The once-mighty tree had been reduced to scattered fragments, leaving a stark and undeniable sign of the force unleashed by Zhihui. 

Seeing this, "Internal damage huh, and I can do around like..four more of them?" Zhihui said, staring at his palm intently."How strong would it be if I used everything in the tank.." 

Zhihuis lips curled and his eyes twinkled with anticipation, he raised his hand up once more.