The Chasing demon sect had constantly been provided with reports about the Inheritance ground, its rewards to each trial were like a magnet that attracted all the ambitious cultivators that were nearing the third rank of the dantian.
There were many like Noah who were in the solid stage of the second rank, the previous strongest rank 2 cultivator, Perry, was an example of that.
Yet, they would rather take the slow but steady approach when it came to the breakthrough to the third rank, an injury during that process could be fatal to the cultivation journey of a cultivator and it could even take its life away.
However, that approach changed when more and more rumors about the possible gains behind the trials of the separate dimension became public.
A high number of disciples that were in the solid stage begun to isolate themselves in their caves, trying to concentrate solely on reaching the peak of the second rank.
In the more than two years that had passed since the separate dimension was discovered, many rank 2 cultivators had successfully stepped on the peak of the human ranks.
Of course, there was a high number of casualties due to that reckless approach but the sect couldn't care less about it, rank 2 cultivators could be nurtured easily while one in the third rank was a powerful asset, almost any number of casualties was worth increasing their numbers.
Noah was aiming for the same thing but his approach was quite different.
The Dantian's opening gave him a lot of free time, only three days each week were used for that practice if the procedures and the resting time were summed.
That's why he could focus on the accumulation of merit points in those years, the generous rewards of the sect and the lack of manpower allowed him to reach the needed sum for the fourth Kesier rune even if he only did missions suited for rank 2 cultivators.
As for the secret arts, he had momentarily put their study in the back of his mind.
After all, the level of his centers of power had the priority and the Inheritance ground had items and techniques that vastly surpassed the value of a secret art, the right choice was to hasten his entrance in the dimension.
With the fourth Kesier rune in his possession, Noah could finally seclude himself inside his cave with the intention of coming out of it as a rank 3 cultivator.
That breakthrough arrived even earlier than Noah had expected.
Noah didn't have clear methods of comparison, rank 3 cultivators always appeared like middle-aged people between their thirties or forties so he couldn't really know how fast he was improving.
Yet, he knew that it generally took three years to reach the peak of each stage of the second rank, and a bit more when it came to the solid stage.
Noah had entered the second rank when he was eighteen, a feat possible only thanks to the early formation of his dantian which gave him a head start.
Now, after a bit more than eight years of methodic training and constant battles, he was finally stepping in the apex of the human ranks!
It didn't take much for his dantian to reach the peak of the solid stage, he was using an unorthodox technique paired with an extremely good potion that could remove its aftereffects and the "Breath" blessing that created an ideal training environment.
Also, his body had been at the peak of the lower tier of the fourth rank for such a long time and his mind had been in the third rank for three years already, the superior level of his centers of power pushed the improvement speed of his dantian at an even higher level!
He was still a few months away from being twenty-seven but his dantian was already unable to enlarge anymore.
'The Sea snake's tears is indeed a good potion, I didn't even need to rest to relieve the stress of my dantian.'
Noah thought as he inspected his low waist.
His dantian had reached its maximum expansion and capacity, shining black crystals were amassed in its insides.
A bottle containing a shining dense liquid appeared in his hand, that was the reagent needed for the breakthrough in the third rank, Noah had prepared a few bottles of it already.
The contents of the bottle were quickly drunk by Noah, he was virtually at his peak form, there was no reason to hesitate.
The temperature of his low waist rose immediately as the "Breath" inside his dantian began to heat up.
The black crystals liquefied and then evaporated as the impurities in them were expelled from their composition.
The impurities shot at high speed toward the walls of the dantian, they seemed to be unobstructed and ready to return to the outside world.
Yet, there was a wall around the dantian.
The wall was impenetrable, no matter how fast or dense the impurities were, they couldn't even dent that invisible and cold wall.
The impurities could only slowly fuse with the walls of the dantian, giving it a shining and metallic appearance, it seemed far sturdier than before.
Noah carefully overviewed the process as he used his mental energy to create the blockage that contained the impurities, he had to admit that he had overestimated the difficulty of the process.
It couldn't be helped, his mind was far stronger than his dantian, the pressure that it was capable of was enough to force the impurities to fuse with the latter.
'I wonder if I can avoid the reagents the next time, I should be able to purify the "Breath" without any external help.'
Noah had that thought as he watched how the situation in his low waist stabilized, his dantian was smaller than before but it was far sturdier.
Inside, a strand of a brilliant black gas was easily contained by his improved center of power, Noah couldn't help but marvel when he sensed the amount of power contained in that little quantity of "Breath".
'Rank 3 cultivator, gaseous stage.'
A smile appeared on his face when he had that thought, his centers of power were now a match of William, the man that had introduced him to the cultivation world!