Meanwhile, in another courtyard within Dragon Yuan Mountain, Lin Shou sat cross-legged in the centre of a secluded cultivation room, his upper body bare as waves of scorching heat continuously radiated from his physique, causing the temperature inside the room to reach an almost unbearable level. Sweat constantly emerged from his pores, yet before it could even gather on his skin, the terrifying heat surrounding his body caused it to evaporate into thin wisps of white steam, leaving the room filled with a faint haze.
Lin Shou's expression remained calm despite the astonishing temperature.
His body had already reached Rank 2 peak stage and after years of cultivation and tempering, the vitality contained within his flesh and blood had become extremely vigorous, so vigorous that simply sitting there without deliberately circulating his cultivation was enough to affect the environment around him.
But his attention was not focused on his physical body.
His consciousness had already sunk deep into his sea of consciousness.
Within that vast spiritual space, his spiritual form stood beneath an endless darkness, staring toward the distant centre where a blazing orb floated quietly.
The orb resembled a miniature sun.
Crimson and golden flames continuously danced across its surface, each flicker containing a profound rhythm that seemed connected to the deepest mysteries of fire, and whenever Lin Shou looked at it, he could vaguely sense an inexplicable attraction drawing his spiritual form toward it.
This wasn't the first time he had attempted to approach the orb.
Every time he succeeded, something unexpected would happen.
Sometimes he would receive a fragment of comprehension related to Li Fire, sometimes his understanding of his Martial Intent would deepen, and occasionally he would experience strange flashes of insight that were impossible to obtain through ordinary meditation.
Because of this, Lin Shou had gradually realised that the blazing orb was probably connected to his Martial Concept in some way.
His Li Fire Martial Intent had already reached the current peak of the Intent Stage.
At this point, he had already accumulated enough comprehension.
The next step was to transform that Intent into Martial Will.
Yet every time Lin Shou attempted to take that final step, he failed.
The moment he tried to force his Martial Intent into a higher state, his consciousness would suddenly tremble and an intense headache would spread through his mind, forcing him to stop before his spirit suffered damage.
At first, Lin Shou had been confused.
He had originally believed that his comprehension was insufficient, but after repeatedly analysing the problem and consulting the Grand Elder, he gradually understood the reason.
Martial Concepts were not simply methods for comprehending the mysteries of the world.
They were also methods of refining one's spirit.
From Momentum to Intent, from Intent to Martial Will and eventually toward Martial Domain, every step required the martial artist to use their comprehension to continuously temper and refine their Shen.
But refinement had a limit.
A person could not endlessly refine their spirit without limit.
Once the spiritual strength that could be refined at a particular level had been completely exhausted, further attempts would only result in failure.
Lin Shou had already refined his Shen to the limit permitted by his current realm.
There was simply nothing left for his Martial Concept to refine.
What he lacked now wasn't comprehension.
It was accumulation.
His soul needed time to naturally become stronger, his Shen needed nourishment, and only after accumulating sufficient spiritual foundation would he possess enough strength to support the transformation from Martial Intent into Martial Will.
There was no shortcut.
At least, not one that the Grand Elder knew of.
Therefore, Lin Shou could only wait.
However, Lin Shou was never someone who was willing to simply sit around and wait.
If there was even the slightest possibility of advancing his comprehension, he would naturally attempt it.
His spiritual form took another step forward.
The moment his foot landed, an invisible pressure descended upon him.
His spiritual body trembled slightly.
The darkness surrounding him seemed to become heavier, while the blazing orb in the distance remained completely motionless, its flames quietly burning as though waiting for him.
Lin Shou gritted his teeth.
He took another step.
Then another.
Every step forward caused the pressure on his spiritual form to increase.
It was strange.
The distance between himself and the orb did not seem particularly far, yet every step felt as though he were climbing an enormous mountain.
The stronger his spirit became, the greater the obstacle seemed to become as well.
Lin Shou raised his head.
The blazing orb was now much clearer.
He could see countless strands of flame twisting around its surface, each one carrying a profound rhythm.
The rhythm seemed to contain the essence of Li Fire.
Destruction, purification, transformation, refinement, life and death, all seemed to exist within those flames.
Lin Shou's eyes gradually became brighter.
His Li Fire Martial Intent began moving within his spiritual form.
The moment his Intent came into contact with the surrounding pressure, the flames around the orb suddenly became more violent.
BOOM!
A wave of invisible force spread outward.
Lin Shou's spiritual form was pushed backwards several steps.
He stabilised himself.
His expression became solemn.
"So close."
He could feel it.
He was almost there.
He took another step.
Then another.
His spiritual form trembled violently, yet he refused to retreat.
The distance between himself and the blazing orb continued shrinking.
Eventually, he could almost feel the terrifying heat radiating from it.
Lin Shou stretched out his hand.
His fingertips slowly approached the surface of the orb.
Just a little more.
His fingers finally touched it.
The entire sea of consciousness suddenly shook.
BOOM!
An overwhelming crimson light erupted from the blazing orb.
The darkness disappeared completely.
For an instant, Lin Shou felt as though he had been swallowed by an endless sea of fire.
Countless images flashed through his mind.
He saw a blazing sun hanging above an ancient wilderness, he saw mountains being melted beneath terrifying flames, he saw rivers of fire flowing across the earth, he saw weapons being forged within enormous furnaces, and he saw fire burning through darkness until nothing remained.
Yet within that destruction, he also saw another side of fire.
Fire provided warmth.
Fire refined.
Fire transformed.
Fire could destroy something old and allow something new to be born.
A profound understanding of Li Fire flashed through his consciousness.
Lin Shou's eyes widened.
His Martial Intent trembled violently.
For a brief instant, he felt as though he had touched the threshold of something deeper.
Something beyond Intent.
Something that could become Will.
But before he could grasp that feeling, the blazing orb suddenly erupted with an even greater force.
BOOM!
Lin Shou's spiritual form was violently thrown backwards.
He couldn't resist.
The crimson light engulfed his entire consciousness, and his mind went blank.
At the same time, something strange happened in the outside world.
Lin Shou's physical body suddenly trembled.
The crimson light that had erupted inside his sea of consciousness seemed to ignore the boundary between his spirit and body, penetrating outward and flowing through his entire physique.
It passed through his Niwan Palace, entered his meridians and then spread toward his countless acupoints.
His Astral Gang Qi immediately began surging.
The crimson Gang Qi within his acupoints was shaken violently as that strange light entered it, and for a moment the two seemed to collide.
There was no explosion.
Instead, the strange light gradually merged into the Gang Qi.
The transformation was silent.
Lin Shou's body trembled once.
Then he completely lost consciousness.
He knew nothing of what happened afterward.
Time passed quietly.
When Lin Shou finally regained consciousness, the room had already become dark.
Moonlight entered through the window, casting a pale glow across the floor.
Lin Shou's eyelids slowly opened.
His consciousness was still somewhat hazy.
He remained sitting for several breaths before slowly straightening his back.
Then he froze.
Something was different.
Lin Shou immediately closed his eyes and sent his perception inward.
His expression gradually changed.
His acupoints were completely stable.
The crimson Gang Qi within them was flowing smoothly through his meridians, yet compared with before, there was a distinct difference.
It was not simply more abundant.
The quality had changed.
Lin Shou immediately circulated a strand of Gang Qi.
BOOM!
The moment it moved through his meridians, a powerful pressure erupted from his body.
The air around him trembled.
His eyes opened.
"Peak Xuan Gang."
He could clearly feel it.
His cultivation had advanced.
Without deliberately absorbing spiritual energy, without consuming any treasure and without intentionally attempting a breakthrough, he had somehow crossed the final threshold of the Xuan Gang Realm.
Lin Shou's expression became strange.
He slowly circulated his Gang Qi again.
The crimson energy flowed through his body like a raging river, but unlike before, every strand seemed denser and more vigorous, carrying a stronger pressure than the Gang Qi he had previously possessed.
The difference wasn't merely quantitative.
It was qualitative.
His Gang Qi had become purer.
Stronger.
More powerful.
Lin Shou clenched his fist.
A faint crimson radiance emerged around his fingers.
The surrounding air distorted slightly beneath the pressure.
He slowly released his fist, his eyes becoming contemplative.
"The blazing orb..."
His gaze became distant.
He had originally entered his sea of consciousness intending to seek another opportunity to deepen his Li Fire Martial Intent.
Instead, he had unexpectedly received an advancement in cultivation.
More importantly, the light from the orb had actually reached his physical body.
Lin Shou couldn't help wondering whether this had happened because his Li Fire Martial Intent had reached the peak of the Intent Stage, or whether the orb itself possessed some mysterious connection to his cultivation.
Unfortunately, he had no answer.
He closed his eyes again and carefully examined his body.
Everything was stable.
His acupoints were intact, his meridians were unobstructed and his Astral Gang was circulating smoothly.
There was no sign of instability.
If anything, his foundation seemed even more solid than before.
Lin Shou slowly exhaled.
"Then I'll accept it."
He wasn't someone who would reject an opportunity simply because he didn't understand it.
His cultivation had advanced, his Xuan Gang had become stronger and his comprehension of Li Fire had deepened.
That was enough.
As for the transformation into Martial Will, he would continue accumulating.
There was no need to force it.
Lin Shou stood up and stretched his body.
His joints immediately produced a series of crisp sounds.