Grinding Cultivation Toward Martial Saint

He still didn't stir up any ripples, as if he had always been a part of the lake itself.

"This... is too miraculous!" Witnessing his own disappearance and reappearance, he couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

Normally, the volume his body occupied would push the water around it outward.

So when his figure vanished,

the disappearance of an adult's volume underwater would instantaneously create a vacuum, the presence of which would cause the water to rush in to fill the void, thereby initiating movement.

But his experience had just been different.

Whether it was the sudden disappearance or the sudden appearance, neither had triggered any change.

From this, one could already see the profundity of the Great Five Elements Water Escape; it was simply defying the laws of physics.

Then, he assessed his body's condition.

He couldn't help but give a wry smile.

Merely attempting it for less than the duration of two breaths, he found that his body had significantly depleted its reserves.

Whether it was spiritual power, physical strength, Qi-blood, or Inner Breath... he had experienced a massive consumption in all aspects.

This also meant the use of this Innate Divine Skill was extremely draining; with his current condition, he simply couldn't sustain its use for an extended period.

After resting for a moment,

nourished by the lake water, Jiang Ning quickly recovered to his peak condition.

"The Great Five Elements Water Escape, this Innate Divine Skill must be a means of escape!"

Jiang Ning murmured to himself.

Then, with a thought,

his figure instantly vanished from his perception, completely merging with the lake.

Next,

he moved.

In an instant,

he felt everything within his perception blur, as if he were sitting on a high-speed train, watching the scenery a meter away from the window, everything a blur.

In just a moment, he had no idea how far he had traveled or where he had arrived.

The next moment,

he fell from that special state, reappearing within the water.

At this time, he felt exceptionally weak, as if his body was drained and his Essence Qi and spiritual power were nearly exhausted, with his Inner Breath completely spent as well.

"The expenditure is indeed immense!" Jiang Ning couldn't help but give a bitter smile.

He then quietly felt the lake's nourishment on his body, rapidly regaining his strength in the rejuvenating water.

At the same time, he surveyed his surroundings.

But the scenery at the bottom of the lake was too similar, and he had no clear indication whether he had been there before.

"I can only wait for my condition to recover before locating myself on the surface of the lake!"

With this thought, he patiently waited for his bodily condition to revive.

Time passed,

and he once again felt energized with a full spiritual presence and ample physical strength.

His condition had completely recovered.

...

Boom—

The thick ice layer suddenly split open, throwing the accumulated snow up to a height of two to three zhang.

Exploding out of the snow, a figure emerged.

It was none other than Jiang Ning.

After fully recovering, he shot straight upwards.

He had made use of the Great Five Elements Water Escape, but he couldn't judge the distance he had crossed while underwater, nor could he discern his direction in the moment.

However, upon reaching above the ice, it was different.

He looked up at the breaking dawn in the distance and quickly found the direction of his home.

Boom—

A sudden explosion resounded on the spot, ice cracking beneath his feet, collapsing downward.

Using this reaction force, Jiang Ning soared into the sky, jumping a good ten zhang in one bound.

Midair,

as he felt his upward momentum slow and his form began to fall,

the Inner Breath in his Dantian suddenly erupted.

It surged along the channels of his body towards the Yin Qiao Meridian, Yang Qiao Meridian, Yin Wei Meridian, and Yang Wei Meridian within the Eight Extraordinary Meridians of his legs and also through the twelve main meridians, specifically the Kidney Meridian of Foot-Shaoyin, the Liver Meridian of Foot-Jueyin, the Spleen Meridian of Foot-Taiyin, and the Gallbladder Meridian of Foot-Shaoyang.

Simultaneously, the countless smaller channels within his legs filled with Inner Breath.

Boom—

His legs struck down upon empty space.

A mist formed beneath his feet, and a punch-like wave of air visibly spread out from his point of impact, rippling outward.

This action stalled his descent, propelling him forcefully forward in midair.

Feeling the whistling wind beside his ear, a thick joy surfaced on Jiang Ning's face.

With each step spanning a good ten zhang,

he took another step.

Boom—

The air underneath his feet exploded again, sending another ring of airwaves spreading.

With this as support, he launched forward once more.

As he continued to step down,

with each footfall, another blast of airwaves erupted.

The powerful recoil made his descending foot feel as though it was pressing against solid ground, and his figure shot forward in midair with a fierce leap.

At this moment,

Jiang Ning felt truly free, flying with the freedom of a bird.

His heart swelled with boundless exhilaration.

Flight, what a concept of freedom it was.

It was only with the surge of his Inner Breath that he was finally able to attempt this today and realize he had achieved it.

Such a feat of traversing the void required no technique—it relied solely on brute force to hurl oneself through the air.

This was indeed the manifestation of the saying "great strength brings miracles," illustrated by his soaring through the sky.

As his proficiency increased, Jiang Ning's speed in the sky grew faster and faster.

But after about a dozen breaths, he felt the total amount of Inner Breath in his Dantian had decreased by more than half.

"I see it!"

At this time, a smile appeared on his face.

From a high vantage point, with his powerful sight, he could already see the location of his home.

Then, while still in midair, he looked back over his shoulder.

He quickly located the spot from which he had just emerged through the ice.

Comparing the two, he felt a shock in his heart.

Because the distance between where he had broken through the ice and the Chaotic Beach beside his mansion seemed to be about thirty li by his estimation.

That's approximately fifteen kilometers.

What did this mean?

He remembered in his past life driving from the city center to his hometown in the county, which was less than twenty kilometers away, and it took him about half an hour by car.

This meant that, just now, having used the Great Five Elements Water Escape, an Innate Divine Skill,

In just an instant, he had traversed a distance that would have taken half an hour by car in his previous life.

"Hiss—"

With a change of understanding and comparison, he suddenly inhaled sharply while suspended in midair.

It was then that he truly felt the terrifying nature of the Great Five Elements Water Escape.

Such a technique was like something out of mythology.

It completely exceeded his understanding.

Amidst his shock, he gradually descended from the air, step by step.

A moment later,

He slowly landed on the ice layer, standing still.

Originally, he had planned to go home to measure how far he had traveled using Water Escape.

Now, from his high viewpoint, he already knew the distance he had traversed.

In an instant, he had crossed thirty li.

With his goal achieved, it seemed there was little point in returning home.

"No!" he shook his head.

"I haven't told my elder brother and sister-in-law that I'm leaving, and Old Turtle, having lived for over two hundred years, must know a lot about Luoshui Lake. To seek treasures at Luoshui, I must bring him along!"

After some thought,

He shattered the ice with his foot and dived into the water.

Now, with the magic of his Swimming Skill, his speed in the water was almost as fast as on land.

Moreover, having just exhausted more than half of his Inner Breath traversing the air, he now needed to enter the water to recuperate faster.

Breaking through the ice into the water.

Expanding his spiritual power, he suddenly found the range of water he could control significantly increased.

A radius of five li was now entirely under his control.

"Indeed, the improvement of Swimming enhances my Spiritual Field in the water. The more breakthroughs Swimming Skill achieves, the larger the area of water my Spiritual Field can cover,"

Jiang Ning nodded satisfactorily.

Then he opened his personal panel again.

[Source Energy Points]: 1793.67

[Skill]: Chopping Wood Blade Skill+ (Six times breaking limit 7000/7000) (Traits: Touch and Understand, Swift as Lightning, Masterful Blade Control, Unity of Blade and Self, Innate Blade Bone)

Swimming (Seven times breaking limit 8000/8000) (Traits: Underwater Breathing, Water Commanding Art+, Water Spirit Affinity, Cloud Formation and Rainfall, Water Spirit Body, Great Water Escape Skill)

On the panel now, the only skill that could satisfy the condition for Break Limit was Chopping Wood Blade Skill.

Originally, he had planned to use the remaining Source Energy Points to break the limit of Chopping Wood Blade Skill, thereby enhancing its combat capabilities.

However, having now felt the profundity of the Great Five Elements Water Escape, he immediately changed his mind.

Swimming Skill had accumulated eight thousand Experience Value, meeting the requirement for an eighth Break Limit.

What was missing now were only the Source Energy Points.

But this gap was not large.

By his estimation, Swimming would require two thousand points to break the limit for the eighth time.

And he currently had nearly one thousand eight hundred Source Energy Points.

The shortfall of just over two hundred points could be met by tomorrow, based on his efficiency.

Another Break Limit for Swimming would surely increase his efficiency in searching for Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures in the water.

Just as he could control a water area with a radius of five li now.

Whereas, yesterday, he could only control a water area with a radius of three li.

The additional two and a half li in radius had more than doubled his search efficiency.

Based on the area calculation, that was roughly 2.8 times the area under control.

After a simple calculation, his efficiency had increased by more than double.

Therefore, for him at the moment, enhancing Swimming was undoubtedly the most valuable.

As for increasing his strength, he was not in a hurry for now.

Having made his decision firmly, he immediately closed the panel.