Level Up in Martial World

"You are lucky I don\'t have time right now," a deep voice reverberated as the two left, while Lu Zhen\'s ears twitched as he helplessly stayed in that still position.

He could see a thin shadow leaving in the distance while Lu Zhi was being carried by the shadow.

After a short time, a portal opened as if tearing the very fabric of reality revealing a young man who seemed to be almost at the same age as Lu Zhen wearing a green luxurious robe adorned with gold and diamond with a smile that seemed to emit the aura of richness.

"Luckily, I came in time," Lu Ming sighed as he looked at Lu Zhen.

Lu Zhen\'s eyes moved by a small slither in response.

…..

"Master, why didn\'t you kill that bastard?"

"Because there was another first-stage martial artist, and his strength was even stronger than mine."

A black-cloaked figure carried Xia Cai as he travelled in the forest with terrifying speed, almost like he was flying.

"Besides, I don\'t want to reveal my identity," he muttered under his breath as his speed increased.

Xia Cai revealed a bitter expression when he heard this, and his fist tightened.

"Don\'t worry, boy. As long as you can complete that step, you will become a first-stage martial artist that can easily kill Lu Zhen and reach an even higher realm. Although he might be a monster in this small town, he will be considered only a little more talented genius in the outside world," he encouraged Xia Cai, instantly making his eyes light up.

"Master, why didn\'t you come when I was struggling for resources?" This was a man whom Xia Cai had met when he was with his family. The man often visited his family and had taken him as a disciple when he saw his talent. However, after handing a nameless cultivation technique, the man had suddenly disappeared.

"I have a lot of work to do. Sorry, my disciple, I couldn\'t completely nurture you. We will return to our sect in the outside world, and I will properly nurture you then."

"Thank you, master," Xia Cai said expressionlessly as he bowed.

"Don\'t worry about the cultivation technique; that is only a part of the technique, so its grade is quite low. When you combine all the cultivation techniques, it will be a heaven-rank cultivation book."

Xia Cai nodded his head with excitement as he thanked the old man again.

….

Lu Ming snapped his fingers, and instantly Lu Zhen was healed in a matter of seconds.

"You shouldn\'t have recklessly charged the man," he said with a harsh manner.

Lu Zhen cupped his hand as he bowed a little, "Yes, Ancestor, I was a little reckless," he said bitterly.

How could one expect to see a random first-stage martial artist pop out of nowhere in Phoenix City? You have to know that there were only four first-stage martial artists in Phoenix City, and they were all the absolute rulers of the major families here.

A single first-stage martial artist could create another major family out of nothing.

Although the Xia family might be seen as losing, however, until the ancestor of the Xia family dies, nothing is absolutely certain.

"Actually, it\'s not your fault," Lu Ming sighed as he looked into the distance. "Remember, Lu Zhen, there are people higher than you. Unless you reach the absolute peak where you are omnipotent as well as omniscient, there will always be a higher mountain."

"Yes, Ancestor," Lu Zhen bowed with enlightened eyes.

"Alright, we can go back now."

"Ancestor, I have a little request."

"Eh, what is it?" Ancestor Lu looked at Lu Zhen with a confused expression.

"Actually, you see, I seem to have a certain affinity towards the environment inside the portal. My physique seems to be strengthened the more I stay in it, cultivating my ancient warrior physique as well." Lu Zhen quickly conjured up a believable half-truth and half-lie in his mind and blurted it out.

Lu Ming\'s eyes widened when he heard this.

"You can actually be strengthened in the Nihilith dimension?" he said with shock. The Nihilith dimension was the one Lu Zhen was talking about as the void. It was the passageway one could access after reaching the first-stage martial realm.

The Nihilith realm was akin to a parallel dimension connected to this world. However, the peculiar aspect was the absence of living beings, and it was shrouded in complete darkness.

Even first-stage martial artists, with their almost immortal-like power, couldn\'t see clearly in this darkness. Another unique feature was that once a person entered the Nihilith realm, it became nearly impossible to locate any other first-stage martial artist or higher unless they entered from the same gateway.

This exclusivity made it relatively safe to travel while communication was nearly impossible to do.

Moreover, unless a person received protection from a first-stage martial artist or possessed a power level close to that of a first-stage martial artist, the harsh environment in the Nihilith realm could induce immense pain, inflict grievous wounds, or even prove fatal.

Despite the outward appearance of first-stage martial artists tearing the fabric of reality, they were essentially using their intent to resonate with the realm, opening up a passage to the coordinates they had marked in advance. While there were several restrictions, travelling was relatively straightforward.

It was like a Minecraft portal gun!

However, Lu Ming wasn\'t surprised for long, as he readily accepted Lu Zhen\'s explanation. Being a first-stage martial artist, he had a broader view of the world and knew that there were many strange talents in this realm.

He had once heard about a person who was born with Qi pathways readily formed, and with enough accumulation of Qi even as a child, she became a true third-stage martial artist at the age of four and a first-stage martial artist at the age of thirty. Considering this, Lu Zhen\'s affinity with the Nihilith realm seemed quite lacklustre compared to her.

"Very well, I will let you run around the portal, as long as you stay within the range of ten kilometres around me."

Lu Zhen respectfully nodded his head upon hearing this.

Lu Ming casually swiped his hands, and a void portal materialised.

"Let\'s go."

He was once again met with a dark eerie environment where he couldn\'t see anything making him feel like he himself was the blind man.

He rubbed his arm and feeling the friction he at least knew that he wasn\'t blind it was just that no light can pass here.

Lu Zhen\'s adaptability skill had not been fully utilised due to a very specific reason: he wasn\'t given enough time during fights. While he could adapt to things, the fights he was in were usually very fast. Even if the fight was longer, he was unfortunately made to dodge most of the time due to the decisive attacks.

This rendered his adaptability skill almost entirely useless in a fight, it was still useful for support however it still lacked any effectiveness in battle.

Now that he knew his body could also be cultivated if he endured high-impact attacks (not enough to kill him), he could strengthen his physique and even condense his muscles to cultivate his divine physique. This could potentially help him enter the first-stage martial realm through raw body strength, instantly becoming one of the top trump cards in his arsenal for cultivation.

"Let the level up begin," he muttered with a tinge of excitement; however, he instantly became calm again feeling the pricking sensation as if he was stabbed by a thousand needles in every place of his body however it wasn\'t exaggeratedly painful like the last time he has tried a she could cope with it for now.

But the gradual condensation of his muscle didn\'t happen since his body didn\'t need to adapt which caused him to frown.

Lu Zhen slowly attempted to move, and as expected, the pricking sensation intensified, reaching a terrifying point where his entire body was covered in small marks from sharp needles. However, his skin remained uncut.

His muscles slowly contracted as the process of condensing his muscle began again.

Initiating a rhythmic back-and-forth movement restricted to his body, he refrained from moving his feet.

As time passed, his speed increased, and his muscles contracted faster and faster, resulting in a more condensed form. Lu Zhen\'s height decreased, and he appeared increasingly malnourished with each passing moment.

Lu Zhen\'s clothes began to rip revealing a lean body that seemed to be more dried out however it seemed to hide a terrifying power in his packed muscle. Finally he broke down succumbing to the pain from the relentless pricking, which had now reached an all-time high.

Ahhh!

Unable to endure any longer, forcing a guttural scream from Lu Zhen in the pitch darkness. His body bled profusely, the cuts from the pricks breaking through his skin making his mind clouded with pain.