The mysterious martial arts in the Bloodline Ring

As Shi Yan retracted the overflowing vital essence, his gaze instinctively fell upon the dark red ring on his left ring finger—a peculiar ring he had named the Blood Vein Ring, which he had discovered in the Blood Pool. This ring, it seemed, was intricately connected to the pool.

A sudden thought struck him, recalling the moment when he first wore the ring. At that time, his vital essence was still weak, and as soon as he put the ring on, the essence within him surged uncontrollably toward it. However, because his essence was too feeble, it couldn't break through the flesh and enter the ring.

Now, having ascended to the realm of the Third Sky, his vital essence had grown more robust and condensed, allowing him to externalize it with ease...

If he were to inject his essence into the ring, would something extraordinary occur?

Curiosity gnawed at him as he felt a deep, inexplicable connection to the ancient ring, sensing it might hold the key to unraveling the mysteries within his meridians.

Peering through the gaps in the leaves, Shi Yan observed the Mo Clan warriors growing increasingly distant, unlikely to return anytime soon.

Shi Yan decided to give it a try!

Slowly channeling his essence from his lower abdomen, the flow gradually accelerated before it surged into his left arm. As the essence coursed through his arm, his meridians throbbed with a dull ache. The essence moved with unstoppable force, crashing into his ring finger and then suddenly poured into the flesh beneath the ring's face.

"Hissss!"

The essence, now as fine as smoke, initially seeped from beneath the ring, then, in an instant, streams of pure essence vanished into it.

The Blood Vein Ring abruptly erupted in a scarlet radiance, as if a barrier within it had been violently torn apart. A strange surge of thought flooded out from the ring, racing along Shi Yan's arm, up to his neck, and finally into his mind.

Martial Skill—Berserk!

The thought released from the Blood Vein Ring turned out to be a wave of memories—a peculiar martial skill. The method to cultivate this skill etched itself deep into Shi Yan's memory like a brand.

Martial skills are techniques for harnessing vital essence, a means of utilizing essence in combat. Similar to alchemists, martial skills are also divided into five levels: Mortal, Profound, Spirit, Saint, and Divine.

The classification of martial skills differs somewhat from the grading of alchemists, who rank within seven tiers at each level, whereas martial skills have no such tiers, only the five levels.

High-level martial skills can maximize a warrior's potential, granting them fearsome offensive power. The higher the skill level, the more intricate the control of essence. However, cultivating high-level skills requires an equivalent level of martial realm; the more advanced the skill, the harsher the cultivation conditions.

Typically, warriors of the Acquired and Innate realms find Mortal-level martial skills most suitable. Those at the Human Realm and Hundred Calamities Realm are best served by Profound-level skills, while those at the Earth Realm and Nirvana Realm benefit most from Spirit-level skills. Warriors at the Heaven Realm and Divine Connection Realm find Saint-level skills most appropriate, and those at the True God and Divine King Realms are best suited for Divine-level skills.

Lower-level warriors attempting to cultivate high-level skills usually waste their time, as their realm and essence strength are insufficient. Even if they succeed, their power is limited by their inadequate realm, making it hard to fully unleash the skill's potential, rendering lower-level skills more effective.

For instance, a warrior at the Acquired Realm, even if they possess a legendary Divine-level skill, would find it wasted on them, as their weak realm makes it nearly impossible to master such a skill.

Conversely, if a high-level warrior lacks a high-level skill, relying on low-level skills, they cannot fully realize their power.

A True God Realm warrior, for instance, limited to Mortal or Profound-level skills, would see their strength drastically diminished, restricted by the lower-tier skills to merely 70-80% of their true power.

On the Grace Continent, martial skills are rarer and more treasured than alchemists' elixirs, considered the most precious treasures. Generally, martial skills are held by the major families and various powers. The ability of a family to attract warriors is closely linked to the martial skills they possess.

The higher the skill level, the greater its value. High-level warriors, if without high-level skills, would find themselves at a severe disadvantage in battle, frustrated and even risking death.

Hence, for a suitable high-level skill, those with profound martial realms would go to any lengths.

Shi Yan, seated amid the leaves, methodically sorted through the "Berserk" skill in his mind. Only after organizing the memories did he realize that "Berserk" comprised three levels. However, the knowledge in his mind only covered the first level, leaving him uncertain about the skill's grade or whether it suited him.

This martial skill, coming from the Blood Vein Ring and directly imprinted into his mind, arrived in an eerie manner. Its cultivation required a reversal of vital essence, a method drastically different from typical martial skills. Shi Yan hesitated, unsure whether he should cultivate such an enigmatic, incomplete skill.

The Shi family, being one of the five great families of the Alliance, naturally possessed their own martial skills. The family's highest martial skill, a Spirit-level one, was guarded as a treasure by the family head, Shi Jian, and only elders of the Earth Realm were qualified to cultivate it.

Aside from this top-tier Spirit-level skill, the Shi family had various Mortal and Profound-level skills.

Shi Yan had originally planned to cultivate these Mortal and Profound-level skills after returning to the Shi family, leveraging his new status. However, now that the Blood Vein Ring had suddenly revealed this mysterious, ungraded martial skill, he was uncertain whether to pursue it.

With a grim expression, he once again condensed his essence and surged it into the Blood Vein Ring, only to find that the essence was blocked by a barrier within the ring. No matter how hard he tried, the essence couldn't break through. He had a vague sense that something lay beyond that barrier, possibly the remaining two levels of the "Berserk" skill, but it seemed that only by strengthening his essence could he breach the barrier.

Frustrated, Shi Yan withdrew his essence from the ring, pondering once more over the incomplete martial skill in his memory, hesitant about whether to proceed with its cultivation.

Should he cultivate it?

His dark eyes gleamed with determination as he sat cloaked in the leaves, his expression shifting between resolve and doubt. After a long time, he decided to test it, planning to observe any changes in his body while cultivating the first level of "Berserk."

Slowly, his essence flowed toward the Mighty Bone Acupoint. Once there, Shi Yan followed the rotation method of the first level of "Berserk," gradually channeling essence into the Mighty Bone Acupoint, which suddenly began to spin. The negative emotions of hatred, despair, and madness stored within the acupoint were instantly triggered, transforming into a force that started to alter the surrounding muscles and bones.

Pain shot through him!

The flesh around the Mighty Bone Acupoint contracted sharply, the muscles tensing as if in a moment.

Shi Yan's heart trembled. He quickly reversed the flow of his essence, feeling a tearing pain spreading through his meridians. Despite the agony, he steeled himself and pressed on. His essence, like a rampaging beast, rapidly surged past the Mighty Bone Acupoint, hurtling toward the Shoulder True Acupoint.

The essence gathered in the Shoulder True Acupoint, rotating in the same manner, triggering the hidden negative emotions of hatred, despair, and rage. Shi Yan felt the flesh in that area contract suddenly, and a faint white mist began to seep from the pores of his shoulder, carrying with it the emotions of despair and resentment, chilling to the soul!

Reversing the essence flow again, Shi Yan's right arm throbbed with searing pain, cold sweat beading on his forehead as his back grew damp.

The pain was excruciating!

Gritting his teeth, Shi Yan's latent madness erupted. Ignoring the agony in his arm, he continued to drive his essence, now targeting the Five Mile Acupoint...

It was unclear how long it lasted, but with every fiber of his being enduring the urge to scream out, Shi Yan's essence finally surged from the Mighty Bone Acupoint to the Yang Pool Acupoint at his wrist. Every acupoint in his right arm seemed to have been triggered, their hidden negative energies unleashed.

Looking closely, he noticed his right arm had become leaner, the muscles tightened. A pale mist, tinged with despair and resentment, swirled around his arm, emanating emotions that could easily disturb the heart.

The essence roamed his arm, a force like a breached dam, turbulent with negative emotions. Shi Yan felt as if his right arm was brimming with boundless power, a force yearning to be unleashed.

Suddenly, a violent, blood