Chapter 559: Breakthrough in Strength

For Zhu Ying, this period of time could be described as a time in which he had killed numerous martial arts experts.

And with every martial arts expert he killed, he was able to obtain rewards from the system.

Furthermore, with the Great Ming Empire under Zhu Ying's leadership having successively annihilated the Jin Kingdom and the Song Kingdom, the national fortune of the Great Ming Empire had also been significantly enhanced.

Additionally, within this Comprehensive Martial Arts World, the essence of True Qi was inherently dense. Thus, Zhu Ying felt that the True Qi within his body was already sufficient to break through the Divine Ability Realm and ascend to the Astral Qi Realm.

Therefore, he prepared to use this time to forcibly elevate his cultivation realm.

When Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao learned of this, they both came to visit.

Zhu Yuanzhang spoke to Zhu Ying with an excited expression: "Xiongying, I heard you are about to enter secluded cultivation? Is this true?"

Zhu Ying nodded slightly and said, "Grandfather, you are correct. Xiongying indeed intends to attempt a breakthrough to the Astral Qi Realm. Although it will be difficult, it should be within reach."

To be honest, Zhu Ying himself did not actually know if he would succeed. After all, no one knew exactly what the strength of the Astral Qi Realm entailed; in fact, within this Comprehensive Martial Arts World, not a single expert had ever been able to cultivate to this realm.

The strongest experts in the Comprehensive Martial Arts World were merely at the Half-Step Astral Qi Realm; no one had ever reached the complete Astral Qi Realm.

Thus, for Zhu Ying himself, he did not know if he would succeed. Of course, regardless of success or failure, Zhu Ying was already the strongest person in this Comprehensive Martial Arts World.

As Zhu Ying's voice fell, Zhu Yuanzhang hurriedly added, "Since Xiongying is doing this, how about I personally act as your protector?"

"I can also take this opportunity to observe the process of ascending from the Divine Ability Realm to the Astral Qi Realm. If I ever have the chance to break through to the Astral Qi Realm in the future, I will be better prepared."

Facing Zhu Yuanzhang's request, Zhu Ying did not refuse. He nodded slightly and said, "Since Grandfather wishes to watch, then please enter this secret chamber with Xiongying."

At this moment, Zhu Biao, acting as the Crown Prince of the Great Ming, also hurriedly spoke up: "Xiongying, your father also wishes to go along."

Clearly, both Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao held immense interest and curiosity regarding the Astral Qi Realm; both men wanted to witness with their own eyes the process of Zhu Ying breaking through from the Divine Ability Realm to the Astral Qi Realm.

Zhu Ying nodded slightly and then opened the doors to the secret cultivation chamber.

Subsequently, Zhu Ying spoke to Commander Liu Lei of the Imperial Guard outside the chamber: "Without my command, no one is permitted to enter this secret chamber. Should anyone disobey, kill them immediately."

Liu Lei responded instantly, "Understood. Please rest assured, Imperial Grandson. As long as I am here, no one will dare disturb Your Highness's quiet cultivation."

Immediately after, Zhu Ying closed the doors of the secret chamber. He then turned to Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao and said, "Grandfather, Father, Xiongying does not know what kind of phenomena will occur during the breakthrough from the Divine Ability Realm to the Astral Qi Realm, so you two must prioritize your safety."

Seeing Zhu Ying speak so seriously, a trace of dread appeared on Zhu Yuanzhang's face.

Clearly, Zhu Ying keenly perceived this, and he spoke again: "Grandfather, if you are afraid, you can leave right now."

Zhu Yuanzhang hurriedly replied, "How is that possible? I am a Grandmaster, after all. Don't worry, Xiongying. Just focus on your breakthrough; you needn't worry about me or Biao'er."

Beside him, Zhu Biao also said, "Indeed, Xiongying. Father and I will be fine. Your priority is to concentrate your energy and strive for a successful breakthrough to the Astral Qi Realm."

Zhu Ying nodded slightly, then sat cross-legged inside the secret chamber.

Soon after, Zhu Ying slowly closed his eyes and began to mobilize the massive amount of True Qi within his body.

In an instant, a golden light radiated from around Zhu Ying's body.

At the same time, Zhu Ying vaguely felt as if the meridians within his body were merging with this True Qi. Gradually, Zhu Ying even lost the sensation of his own physical existence.

Little did he know that at that moment, his body was burning hot. From the perspective of Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao, massive amounts of heat were radiating from Zhu Ying, and this heat was not transparent, but rather shimmering with a golden light.

To be honest, Zhu Yuanzhang was greatly shocked upon seeing this. He leaned in and whispered into Zhu Biao's ear, "What is happening?"

Zhu Biao shook his head slightly and said, "Father, this might be caused by the True Qi within Xiongying's body," he guessed.

Simultaneously, above the Imperial Palace, the originally clear sky suddenly underwent a violent change. For a moment, howling winds swept in, accompanied by the roar of thunder.

And this spectacle did not only appear above the Imperial Palace; the skies across the entire Comprehensive Martial Arts World were the same.

Upon seeing this, the common people showed expressions of tension; some even believed the heavens were about to collapse.

Inside the secret chamber.

Zhu Ying was unaware of this; he was currently gathering all the True Qi within his body.

Before long, all this True Qi was absorbed into his body. Gradually, the heat generated outside his body began to form what appeared to be a thick shroud of True Qi.

Furthermore, the color of this True Qi shroud shifted from its original gold to red, then to blue, and so on, before finally returning to a white light.

This sight left Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao feeling dizzy from the spectacle.

As for Zhu Ying, at this moment, he felt an incomparable sense of lightness; he could even clearly perceive all things in the world!

Although Zhu Ying had experienced a similar sensation when breaking through the Divine Ability Realm, this feeling of perceiving all things in heaven and earth was even more pronounced. He could clearly feel his body continuously absorbing the True Qi existing within the animal kingdom.

In fact, that was exactly what was happening.

At this moment, the True Qi between heaven and earth seemed to surge toward the Imperial Palace of the Great Ming Empire—more accurately, toward Zhu Ying, who was cultivating in the secret chamber.

Not long after, the True Qi shroud formed around Zhu Ying's body suddenly vanished. Simultaneously, he felt his bones erupting with a series of cracking sounds.

Suddenly, a wave of intense pain surged through Zhu Ying's body.

Seeing this, he hurriedly mobilized the True Dragon Qi along with the national strength of the Great Ming.

Two powerful forces collided within Zhu Ying's body, then merged, and finally dispersed throughout his entire being. Subsequently, these two forces engaged in a massive struggle against the True Qi within his body.

After an unknown amount of time, Zhu Ying suddenly felt the absence of the True Qi within him.

This gave him a fright, but very quickly, Zhu Ying realized that although his True Qi had disappeared, he possessed a much more powerful form of energy.

Moreover, this energy was more tangible than True Qi and possessed even greater strength. Thinking of this, Zhu Ying guessed that the True Qi in his body had transformed into Astral Qi.

Just then, Zhu Ying felt as if the Astral Qi within him was about to explode.

*Bang!*

With a deafening roar, an invisible gas erupted directly from Zhu Ying's body, rapidly diffusing in all directions.

Inside the secret chamber, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao immediately mobilized their own True Qi to defend themselves.

Only then were they spared from injury.

Zhu Yuanzhang asked in a hurried tone, "What on earth just happened?"

Zhu Biao shook his head and said, "I don't know either, Father. Could it be that Xiongying has truly reached the Astral Qi Realm?"

Clearly, both Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao were Grandmaster-level experts, yet they did not know what phenomena occurred after a successful breakthrough to the Astral Qi Realm, so both of their faces were filled with confusion.

They instinctively turned their gaze toward Zhu Ying.

The Astral Qi released from Zhu Ying's body continued to spread, expanding from the capital of Song Province to the entire province, and then, with lightning speed, spreading across the entire Comprehensive Martial Arts World.

At this time, Zhu Ying slowly opened his eyes.

Simultaneously, a giant dragon suddenly surged out from within his body. However, compared to before, this was a true giant dragon. Although Zhu Ying could summon dragons previously, they were merely formed of True Qi; this time, it was the actual form of a dragon, bursting directly from his body and then, with thunderous momentum, smashing through the secret chamber and flying high into the sky.

Seeing this scene, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao were left speechless.

They had never imagined that the Astral Qi Realm would be so powerful.

Within the capital of the Song Kingdom, the commoners also quickly saw this giant dragon flying into the high heavens.

"A dragon! I didn't think such a creature actually existed in this world."

"It seems to have come from the Imperial Palace. Could it be that the Great Ming Imperial Grandson summoned it?"

"It's possible. Our Great Ming Imperial Grandson's strength is unfathomable. He can take on the experts of the entire Xiaoyao Sect alone; there is nothing he cannot do."

"Heavens, I never thought I would have the chance to see a dragon in my lifetime."

"There was a massive explosion just now. Does anyone know what happened?"

"I don't know, but I feel like the air has suddenly become much thinner."

...

For ordinary citizens, because they were not martial arts practitioners, they had no way of sensing the massive amount of Astral Qi released by Zhu Ying.

To them, the only sensation was that the air had become much thinner.

The reason for this reaction was that a vast amount of True Qi in the Comprehensive Martial Arts World had been absorbed into Zhu Ying's body.

Inside the secret chamber.

Seeing Zhu Ying open his eyes, Zhu Yuanzhang hurriedly approached and asked with great concern, "Xiongying, did you succeed?"

Zhu Ying nodded slightly and said, "It should be about right."

After saying this, Zhu Ying looked at his hands and used his mind to sense the changes in his body.

Then, he said in a certain tone, "That's right, I succeeded."

Zhu Biao asked curiously, "Xiongying, what changes do you feel in your body after breaking through to the Astral Qi Realm?"

After thinking for a moment, Zhu Ying answered slowly, "There are indeed changes. I seem unable to feel the presence of my body, and the True Qi within me has dissipated."

Clearly, when Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao heard the phrase "True Qi has dissipated," confusion appeared on their faces.

They had no idea what that meant.

"Xiongying, are you saying the True Qi in your body has dissipated? How is that possible? Logically, once your realm breaks through to the Astral Qi Realm, the True Qi in your body should be even more intense."

"How can you not feel the presence of the True Qi?" Zhu Biao said with a nervous expression.

Seeing this, Zhu Ying explained unhurriedly, "Father, you needn't worry too much. The fact that Xiongying cannot feel the presence of True Qi actually proves that I have succeeded."

"Because after entering the Astral Qi Realm, the so-called True Qi within the body becomes Astral Qi."

As Zhu Ying finished speaking, curiosity appeared on the faces of both Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao.

Clearly, they did not understand what this so-called Astral Qi was.

Seeing their confused expressions, Zhu Ying quickly said, "Grandfather, Father, let Xiongying demonstrate this Astral Qi, and I am sure you will understand."

With that, Zhu Ying left the secret chamber with Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao.

As soon as they stepped out of the chamber, Liu Lei, the Commander of the Imperial Guard, immediately rushed to Zhu Ying's side.

Liu Lei asked in a hurried tone, "Your Highness, what exactly happened just now? Why did a giant dragon appear above the secret chamber?"

"Are you injured?"

Zhu Ying responded in a calm tone, "I am not injured. The dragon you just saw was formed by the Astral Qi within my body. Do not be nervous."

Hearing this, Liu Lei felt much more relieved.

Afterward, Zhu Ying led the group slowly toward the outside of the palace.

To be honest, Zhu Ying himself was also very curious about how strong he actually was after entering the Astral Qi Realm.

After all, in this Comprehensive Martial Arts World, the strongest martial arts experts were only at the Half-Step Astral Qi Realm.

And now, Zhu Ying had cultivated to the complete Astral Qi Realm.

Therefore, he was very much looking forward to seeing what would happen.

Zhu Ying sank his breath into his dantian and relaxed his body as much as possible, feeling the Astral Qi contained within him with his entire being. Then, he slowly released a small amount of Astral Qi.

In an instant, a gas even denser than True Qi erupted from Zhu Ying's palms. Zhu Ying suddenly used his consciousness to transform this Astral Qi into the shape of a giant dragon.

Instantly, this dragon and the dragon previously released by Zhu Ying circled in the sky above the Imperial Palace simultaneously.

Immediately following that!

The two dragons collided, causing the sky to instantly become covered in dark clouds, thunder to roar, lightning to flash, and violent winds to sweep in.

An invisible force crashed directly toward the onlookers.

Fortunately, whether it was Zhu Yuanzhang, Zhu Biao, or Commander Liu Lei, they were all martial arts experts and were able to protect themselves.

Zhu Biao spoke to Zhu Ying in a nervous tone, "Xiongying, stop quickly! This Astral Qi is too powerful; do not harm the innocent!"

Zhu Biao was a benevolent ruler; he naturally did not want anyone to be harmed because of this, so he hurriedly told Zhu Ying to stop.