Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

It might sound insane at first to use three Qi Techniques at once, but the more Ryu thought about it, the more feasible it became. The first reason he thought this might be possible was because all three of these techniques were known to be 'Neutral Qi' techniques. This meant that the qi absorbed didn't have any particular affinity or leaning.

Knowing it had this short coming, those three techniques suggested that its user pair its use with techniques that did have this sort of leaning. This was what lit a light bulb for Ryu, he suddenly understood that it wasn't impossible to use multiple Qi Techniques at once as long as they didn't interfere with one another. For example, using a Yin and Yang type technique was almost surely suicide, but using a Neutral Type technique alongside would that had a leaning would be just fine.

From what Ryu could see, one technique focused on the Qi Pulses, another focused on meridian nodes, and the final focused on breaking the limit on Qi Refinement Realm Revolutions. From a surface inspection, they didn't seem to overlap with one another. And, since they were all Neutral Types, that was also yet another worry that didn't have to be considered.

Of course, there was one other thing to consider, and that was the slowing of cultivation. If Ryu used these three techniques, he would be three times slower in the best case scenario, but more likely far worse. However, Ryu decided not to worry about it. While it was true that he wanted to maximize his cultivation speed in order to save his family, he also understood that if he was too fast, he wouldn't become strong enough to do anything. What using these three techniques at once guaranteed him was an unmatched foundation.

Much like the Pulse Opening Realm, the Qi Refinement Realm was divided into four stages: lower, middle, higher and peak. On this Higher Mortal Plane, each one of these stages was divided among four Qi Pulses. This was because those of the Higher Mortal Plane were unaware of the fact that there were six Qi Pulses and not just four. This was one of the main reasons why it was far easier for Ryu to jump cultivation stages to battle those who should be far stronger than him.

The Qi Refinement Realm was similar. Its stages were divided by the number of completed Revolutions. These Revolutions would be dictated by the number of Pulses one had opened, in addition to the quality of one's cultivation technique. Even if you had four open Qi Pulses, it was useless if you were only using a Two Star Qi Technique.

Each Pulse allowed two Revolutions, this made for twelve total Revolutions. In addition to these twelve, there was one final Great Circle Revolution. Once this final Revolution was completed, one would be considered Half-Step into Spiritual Severing. It was only these that one's First Severing could begin.

Obviously, due to their own limitations, the Higher Mortal Plane only had a max of nine total Revolutions. Ryu, however, thanks to the fact he now had Six Star techniques could complete all thirteen possible Revolutions. Still… This didn't take into consideration the abilities [Revolutions Amplifier]. With its help, every Qi Pulse could complete three Revolutions instead of just two. In addition, it allowed one could complete two Great Circle Revolutions, instead of just one!

One can imagine the possible disparity. Even the best and most supported geniuses would only be able to complete thirteen Revolutions. Even if they had [Revolutions Amplifier], they would need to also have Ryu's Chaotic Silk meridians or something similar to even think of surviving its use. Yet, Ryu could complete an enormous seven more Revolutions than those of his cultivation realm.

This seven total might seem arbitrary and even somewhat small, but one had to first consider that every completed Revolution resulted in an exponential increase in quality. The purer your qi was, the more you could store and the stronger your attacks would become thanks to the increased density. In addition, purer energy directly allowed one to complete more Severings during the Spiritual Severing stage, thus resulting in a compounding advantage over multiple cultivation realms.

Ryu didn't need to think about it any longer. He immediately began the process of comprehending these Qi Techniques. Because they were neutral, he didn't need to worry about any elaborate absorption prowess. All he needed was a relatively qi dense meditation space. Luckily, he was currently in one of the best available locations in existence, the Immortal Path!

Without much surprise, Ryu began with [Revolutions Amplifier]. His first task was to convert his own Qi Fumes, into Mortal Qi. As such, it was important to begin with this technique first or else he wouldn't gain the extra possible Revolutions. Once all of one's Qi Fumes evolved into Mortal Qi, there was no need to ever worry about forming Qi Fumes again. Any that wafted from one's Spiritual Foundation would immediately be catalyzed into Mortal Qi.

This sort of process was incomparably smooth for Ryu. If it wasn't for his aching body, it would have been even easier. Luckily, his meridians were nigh indestructible, so his injuries didn't directly influence his cultivation.

The moment Ryu began cultivating in earnest was the moment his Ancestral Great Circle truly shined.

Cultivation was broken into two important facets: breathing and circulation. Qi is absorbed from the mouth and nose which act as gateways. Then, this qi is circulated along certain paths within the meridians. The bodies of living creatures contained the most complex formations in existence and many staple Formations and Arrays that exist today were created from examining them. What the circulation facet did was make use of these formations to elicit wanted responses.

However, Ryu was on a completely different level. His Ice Jade Crystal Body could be broken down to four important abilities: accelerated healing, friend of nature and beasts, absolute balance, and, maybe most importantly now, ungodly cultivation speed!

While others could only absorb qi through the nostrils and lips, every pour of Ryu's body was capable of this feat. He could breathe with his very skin. As a result, his surface area for Qi Absorption reached an unprecedented height.

Ryu hadn't had the opportunity to use this ability during the Awakening and Pulse Opening Realm since neither required active qi absorption, but now, everything was different. It wasn't long before Ryu understood that he had vastly underestimated his own speed. So what if he was three times slower or even more? His starting point was so much higher than anyone else's that this worry seemed like a joke.

His body glowed with a gentle, pulsing light that followed the pattern of his breaths. It should have taken several hours for him to compress his Qi Fumes into Mortal Qi, but the faint wisps that patrolled his meridians were compressed into a white and thick cloudy gas in less than ten minutes. By the half an hour mark, Ryu was already prepared to begin his First Revolution…

Once this step was completed, Ryu would finally enter the Qi Refinement Realm.