Ringing the Bell for a Hundred Years, I Became the Sect’s Ancestor – Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Perfection

Li Qian opened his eyes, as if electricity sparked in the void. He stretched out his palm, a strange airflow surging from the acupoint in his palm. It revolved endlessly in his palm, emitting a faint sizzling sound.

“Is this Internal Qi?”

Li Qian murmured to himself.

Suddenly, his palm changed, fingers forming a sword shape. With a single stroke, accompanied by a sharp whistle, a burst of Sword Qi shot out, flying a full three feet before dissipating.

However, after this single strike, he immediately felt a significant depletion of Internal Qi, a sense of intangible emptiness.

“It dissipates after three feet. The effective attack range is probably only about one foot.”

Li Qian murmured to himself.

Even though it only extended by a foot, it was equivalent to wielding a one-foot-long sword, significantly increasing its threat.

As the saying goes, “Every inch longer, every inch stronger.”

Moreover, Internal Qi attacks were inherently sudden and unpredictable, posing a greater threat in combat than weapons.

The drawback was that Internal Qi was consumed and could not be recovered.

Once Internal Qi was excessively depleted, it was no different from an Internal Strength Martial Apprentice.

“Also, the Internal Qi attack I just unleashed was merely guided by the Sword-Piercing Fist, its power quite limited. I imagine a true Martial Technique would be far more potent.”

Li Qian sighed.

Obtaining Martial Techniques and better Martial Arts Cultivation Methods was no easy feat for him.

He didn’t have many Contribution Points. Even though he knew there were many good things in the Black Market, he had no chance of getting his hands on them.

He could only pin his hopes on the Treasure Map left by Old Song.

But his current strength was too weak; he simply didn’t dare to take such a big risk.

“Take it slow. I’m now a Ranked Martial Artist with some self-preservation ability.”

Li Qian shook his head, casting aside those impractical thoughts.

Since becoming a Ranked Martial Artist, Li Qian’s daily routine hadn’t changed at all.

Bell ringing, martial arts practice.

However, the effectiveness of the Sword-Piercing Fist was diminishing, and his Internal Qi was increasing very slowly.

He urgently needed a true Internal Skill Manual for cultivation. Even with the Time Bell assisting his cultivation, his progress would remain stagnant at the Postnatal First Level for a long time.

Time passed day by day.

Half a year passed in a blink of an eye.

Unknowingly, it had been two years since he entered the Divine Sword Sect as an Odd-Job Disciple.

Host: Li Qian.

Cultivation Level: Postnatal （First Level 17/100）.

Sacrificial Instrument: Time Bell （Treasure 721/1000）.

Martial Art: Sword-Piercing Fist （Major Completion 99/100）.

The information displayed on the system panel had undergone significant changes.

His cultivation level had reached the Postnatal First Level.

Moreover, a progress bar had appeared after “First Level.”

Even after the Sword-Piercing Fist, a progress bar had appeared; this emerged after he became a Ranked Martial Artist.

After several months of continuous cultivation, his Internal Qi cultivation had only increased by seventeen points, roughly three points per month.

At his current cultivation speed, it would likely take him more than two years to reach the Postnatal Second Level.

It was simply too slow.

The Postnatal Realm had nine levels. If it took three years to go from the First to the Second Level, wouldn’t it take decades or even centuries for him to reach the Postnatal Ninth Level? No, he would never be able to achieve it.

The higher the cultivation level, the greater the difficulty and the slower the progress.

There was no helping it; the cultivation effect of the Sword-Piercing Fist would continue to decline until it became completely useless.

“Should I participate in the Inner Sect Disciple Assessment?”

He had that thought for a fleeting moment.

But he immediately dismissed it.

He definitely couldn’t leave the Bell Tower.

For him, martial arts cultivation was actually secondary; the most important thing was the Sacrificial Instrument Time Bell.

“In a little over a year, the Time Bell will be able to upgrade again, and there will surely be greater changes.”

Li Qian’s eyes flickered with anticipation.

He had to be patient.

◈◈◈

As for potential risks, he was now a Ranked Martial Artist. As long as he didn’t leave the Bell Tower — the Bell Tower could provide him with a certain level of defense and sonic deterrence, thereby increasing his strength.

Although he was only at the Postnatal First Level, with the Time Bell, he should be able to handle Martial Artists with higher cultivation levels than him.

Of course, all of this was just his conjecture.

After all, he hadn’t used the Time Bell’s defensive or offensive capabilities.

Chen Hour.

After Li Qian rang the bell, he practiced the Sword-Piercing Fist again. Only after completing a Great Heavenly Cycle did he stop.

At his current cultivation level, it took him several repetitions to complete a Great Heavenly Cycle using the Sword-Piercing Fist.

After practicing, his Internal Qi cultivation barely progressed; the progress bar remained motionless.

However, his attention suddenly shifted to the progress bar of the Sword-Piercing Fist, which had reached 99/100 two months ago.

The last bit of progress seemed to be stuck.

“I wonder what changes will occur when the Sword-Piercing Fist breaks through to the level above Major Completion?”

He felt a sense of anticipation.

At this moment, Chen Yong’s voice suddenly came from the foot of the mountain, “Brother Qian.”

Li Qian jumped down from the Bell Tower and arrived at the slope. He saw Chen Yong sprinting towards him, carrying two wooden buckets.

“Chen Yong, just pour it in there.”

Li Qian said.

“Alright.”

Chen Yong immediately moved as swiftly as the wind, carrying the buckets to a covered pit.

Lifting the cover, Chen Yong poured the two buckets of night soil into the pit.

Li Qian had cleared land on the mountain and planted many vegetables. They definitely needed fertilizer, and in the absence of chemical fertilizers, manure was the best option.

“Brother Qian, the Combat Power Rankings are about to begin again this year. Are you going to participate?”

Chen Yong asked after finishing pouring.

“I can’t leave the Bell Tower unattended, so I won’t participate.”

Li Qian shook his head. “Are you planning to?”

“Yes, to train and gain experience. I felt I learned a lot from participating in the Combat Power Rankings last time.”

Chen Yong nodded.

After Chen Yong went down the mountain, Li Qian cleared some weeds from the soil around the vegetables. There was no need to fertilize for now, and the night soil needed to be properly composted before use, otherwise it could burn the roots.

Halfway through his work, he returned to the Bell Tower, cleaned the dirt from his hands and feet, and went up to the bell platform, preparing to ring the bell at Si Hour.

After ringing the bell for so long, he had become very precise in his timekeeping.

Now he didn’t need to wait half an hour in advance like he did at the beginning, lest he miss the bell-ringing time.

Dong, dong, dong.

After the three rings of the bell, Li Qian practiced the Sword-Piercing Fist again beside the Time Bell. The lingering sound of the bell in his mind seemed to invigorate his Internal Qi, making it flow more smoothly under the guidance of the fist technique.

Suddenly, Li Qian’s mind entered a peculiar state, as if a spark of inspiration flashed. His Sword-Piercing Fist technique underwent subtle adjustments and changes. Faintly, an intangible fist momentum emanated from him.

This also caused the Internal Qi within his body to accelerate drastically. As the fist momentum spread outward, his entire being seemed to transform into a sharp and exposed sword.

Invisible Sword Qi permeated his surroundings, slicing through the air.

Abruptly, he let out a soft shout, his fists striking out like twin swords thrusting forward, accompanied by a sharp whistle.

Bang, bang.

With two soft sounds.

A hanging hourglass was shattered by the invisible Sword Qi. A large amount of sand poured out, scattering on the ground.

Li Qian opened his eyes, his face filled with astonishment.

Because the spot where he had practiced his fist technique was more than a meter away from the shattered hourglass.

It was impossible to shatter it from such a distance using Internal Qi.

Because the attack range of his Sword-Piercing Fist was only about a foot.

But now it had increased severalfold.

What was going on?

Suddenly, as if realizing something, he hurriedly checked the information on the system panel.

Martial Art: Sword-Piercing Fist （Perfection）.