TEN-THOUSAND-FOOT PILLAR
Xiao Wu had all rights to be so shocked.
Even the sacred grounds created by experts of her Xiao Clan could not compare to this single formation. Especially so, when it had been inscribed with mere chalk in but a few hours.
Naturally, she soon compromised, it might simply be because experts might consider formations regarding the lower stages of the Mortal Realm as below them. However then, the term 'foundation' rang in her mind, reminding her of its importance. All of a sudden, she wasn't too sure what to believe...
Unbeknownst to Xiao Wu, the Impure Moonlight Formation went far and beyond the Mortal Realm in terms of profundity. Xu Ling, Xiao Lan, and Blindlight had worked extensively upon arrays of its kind in the past.
Like so, the issue of the Qi strands' varying quality had been taken care of by the formation.
As for the specific strands of her Sensed Qi, they were innately attracted to the Martial Way in her hands and were flying over by themselves. They expectantly awaited outside her Sea's boundaries, obedient and intoxicated because of the treasure in her possession.
Just like that, the 'Seeking and Gathering' part of the breakthrough was accomplished without her needing to even move a finger. What should have taken a whole fortnight of daily meditation, was like so reduced to but a few breaths with a Martial Way.
Brother had predicted it would be extremely quick, but I had no idea what he meant then... This is outrageous.
This was especially so for her who had a Triple Qi: while the sheer amount of Qi at her disposal would inherently be three times that of a normal person, she would have to make three times the efforts of a normal person during her cultivation sessions.
With this formation working its wonders, however, in just a few breaths' worth of time, her reserve of Qi strands had rapidly filled up.
The next step that awaited her was to 'Refine and Pull' the gathered strands.
Soon, she discovered the Martial Way's pressure had rendered the wild strands docile. They obediently awaited their turn and offered no resistance when she made to cleanse them with her Will and drag them inside the Sea of Consciousness's boundaries: they wished nothing else but to join the Martial Way in her projection's palms. Again, the refining went smoothly, and the three Qi flowing in were akin to three tributaries, rapidly filling up her Sea of Consciousness.
Not long later, she experienced the phenomenon of the Inferior Strands repelling each other like magnets. This, even before she attempted to condense them. In no time, the space looked and felt bloated.
She instinctively realized how irrealistic it was to attempt Condensation with such volatile, incohesive Qi. Nonetheless, a Martial Way was even more so irrealistic and illogical, so she proceeded without wavering.
In the time it would take to drink a mug of warm milk, Xiao Wu had finished this gruesome task as well.
From hereon, it would be the uncharted territory of Cheng Hao's theory, beyond her sessions back at the Clan.
It was time to pre-condense the gaseous mass into a Qi Ocean.
...
After a few attempts, the emerald-eyed girl succeeded in forming a small pond in the very centre of her consciousness. The space that had been freed up, she soon filled back up with the plentiful reserves of Xiao Qi still clamouring outside her Sea of Consciousness.
Slowly, a fraction of her monstrous talent was showcased as her mind adeptly split into two.
On one side, she continued wrapping her Will around strand after strand, quickly refining and pulling them into her territory, amassing them in a gaseous mass.
Simultaneously, the refined strands would flow and slowly fill the pond up, unhurriedly and methodically.
Unravelling the bundle of Qi strands at the edge of the Sea of Consciousness and concentrating them in the pond at its centre were three streams.
A purple, wavy and near gaseous stream, just like a dreamy cloud; it gently flowed into the pond without so much as a sound.
A fickle black stream, sometimes but a trickle of water, and other times as overbearingly powerful as a waterfall.
A sturdy and constant white stream, akin to a millenary river that had been flowing nonstop and without any change for thousands of years.
The three different streams then combined into the still pond that had merged into a landscape of purple, black and white.
After one, long hour, from a mere puddle, the entire Sea of Consciousness had been filled.
With the formation of the full-fledged Qi Ocean, the third step had been completed.
Barely even tired yet, the young prodigy immediately went to accomplish the Condensation of the Pseudo-Core without pause; with her competitive spirit ablaze, she had no intention of losing out to the golden-eyed boy!
Especially so, given it was now time for the easy part.
With an expectant smile, Xiao Wu moved her Will to the very centre of the Qi Sea in her Consciousness, the precious Artefact in her projection's hands ethereal and magnificent. Having made her way there, Xiao Wu unhesitantly let go of her Martial Way, unleashing the full might of its pressure unto the surrounding Strands.
As per their incohesive properties, a construct of Qi Strands at the Inferior Stage would rapidly degrade. The pull between strands often present in higher Stages would instead be more akin to a violent push. However, the Martial Way rejected that undeniable truth with a dreadful weight.
In a split second, a massive explosion happened in reverse, as the entire Qi Sea collapsed into a singularity, releasing a bright light.
Before it even died down, Xiao Wu felt it.
She felt as if her very existence had acquired an unmistakable centre; that nucleus, that Core, made her unimaginably stable.
No wonder the Advanced Stage could fly, she finally understood, as she experienced her grip on the World of Qi be sturdier than any foothold.
Alas, the light died down.
The Pseudo-Core was a transparent pellet, so small an adult could enclose it in their hands. For all that Qi to have been condensed into such a small spot, it made one wonder how much denser the Qi of the higher Realms would be for this to be a result of two opposing forces offsetting each other.
In its diaphanous depths, the tree, dragon, and the moon were dormant, like insects encased in amber. However, her connection to them had only grown stronger. Xiao Wu even felt herself attune with the secrets of the three Qi just by keeping them there: just like that, she was in a state of constant enlightenment.
In terms of foundation, her every breath would be the laying of one brick. She wouldn't need to fear straying from the laws of the Triple Xiao Qi so long as her cultivation base was so intrinsically connected to the Martial Way.
Alas, she had that cultivation base, unmatched under the Advanced Stage, rotate once.
Like soldiers marching and conquering territory, she felt her horizon expand as her Will was now powered by her Inferior Stage Qi.
Alas, her Sea of Consciousness ate away at the World of Qi around her, and with it, a sensation of Authority over the surroundings it had encapsulated arose from her very depths.
Indeed, it was Authority; Cheng Hao couldn't have used a better term earlier, Xiao Wu recognized as she bathed in that feeling of extending her control from inside her Sea of Consciousness, to her immediate surroundings in the material world.
And like so, she Awakened.
At that moment, Xiao Wu was forcefully ejected from her meditative state.
Her body was shrouded in black, white, and purple as if it had been set ablaze in blooms of those colours.
The Black-White-Purple brilliance intensified, and finally suddenly shot upwards!
The massive pillar of energy shot in the sky.
Naturally, she knew full well what that pillar of light was: the worldly laws were welcoming her Awakening as a cultivator, exposing the degree of her 'attunement' to her Sensed Qi in the process. An unmistakable showcase of talent.
To the common folk, it would be just one's body that glowed dimly, whereas a ray of light would shoot upwards when one's aptitude was considered excellent.
The records of her Clan affirmed that the highest a beam could go was exactly ten thousand feet, as dictated by the Laws.
Her pillar did not seem to have exhausted its power, and yet why could it not go any higher? It couldn't be she had already reached her limit?
She furrowed her thin, purple brows, visibly displeased.
By her side, the foot-long dragon was scrutinising Xiao Wu's pillar as if he were looking at a nightmare. In its depths, his Primordial eyes could make out the inkling of a paved road; perhaps a staircase spiralling endlessly upwards, would be more apt a term.
The Heaven Devouring Dragon muttered under his breath,
"I wasn't yet born when Five rose to rule over the countless lands. Yet, as I arose above countless, I could eventually feel the Square and Triangle weighing down on all life."
"I came to life in a world before the One, and personally experienced as His Circle encompassed all."
"To think a day would come, I'd experience it again..."
His draconic embers narrowed, and Blindlight felt as if he could barely make it out.
'A single line engraved past them all.'
"...Ahem! You ungrateful brat, why am I not surprised that you don't seem satisfied?" Goldy's pompous voice finally rang as he recollected himself.
"Mr. Goldy!" Xiao Wu bowed her head to him, startled by his words, "Does it mean I really can't go further?"
"Ten thousand feet is a limit set by the worldly laws. Not because they believe that's your limit, but rather because the kind of talent some have goes beyond mere attunement to the Qi. Don't embarrass the Laws, or us for that matter, any further..." Goldy scoffed.
The pillar of energy still shone intensely: it would continue doing so for a slightly longer while, but since it was the world's Laws that powered it, Xiao Wu wouldn't feel any tiredness from having to support it.
Rather, she even felt invigorated! This was an effect of the breakthrough and the feeling of the Pseudo-Core granting her stability the likes of which she had never felt before.
"Remember that your Martial Way is acting as a stabilizer for the Pseudo-Core, so do not remove it unless instructed. If you do, unless you put it back quickly, the Core will explode after a few breaths. No big deal, that's also one of its intended functions, but you will temporarily lose your Pseudo-Advanced stage power."
Before the young girl could even ask, the dragon reassured her, "Don't worry, there are countless ways to use those treasures even without removing them from your Sea. Cheng Hao will explain a few over the next few days. As I'm sure you are slowly realizing..." the dragon chuckled knowingly, "The benefits of keeping them there far outnumber the drawbacks."
Xiao Wu nodded, as even then she could feel her understanding of the Inferior Xiao Qi deepening by the moment.
"Chop, chop now." Blindlight clapped his tiny, draconic arms, so adorably small they barely made a sound, "A territory that has been newly conquered needs to be consolidated. Seeing that Cheng Hao isn't done yet, use this time to stabilize your Sea of Consciousness's boundaries. Otherwise, you'll have to waste time getting them back later as the World of Qi fights back."
"Ah, I was faster!" only now Xiao Wu realized, rejoicing as her purple lips arranged into a brilliant smile.
'Gift!'
Goldy was just as ecstatic.
'Eheheh, yes you were, you good kid. Amazing job! Finally, I get to see that brat defeated on all fronts-'
BOOM!
As if the world had been set ablaze, night turned into day; a summer midday in a land dyed gold.
As the Boy's heavy eyelids rose, it was as if the world itself was looking back at him with a golden pupil in a pitch-black eye, so brilliant was his pillar in that night sky.
Blindlight understood at once, as if the world were speaking to him.
'The Triangle, the Square, the Circle…'
The Primordial gulped.
'And alas, two more lines.'
One line that was to soar higher; Highest.
One line that had once fallen short; unrelenting.
'Having met in their path, all was but to be crossed out underneath.'