No matter how powerfully the energy surged within him, it couldn’t make that number budge by even 0.1.
’This must be one of the ’minor limits’ in the path of the Martial Dao, something beyond the legendary ’Four Great Limits’.’
On the path of the Martial Dao, before reaching the Planetary-level, there were the "Four Great Limits," which corresponded to life force indices of 18,000, 36,000, 72,000, and 100,000.
And below these Four Great Limits, when a Martial Artist cultivated a certain realm to its absolute peak and Perfection, they would also encounter a "minor limit."
Only by forging a new path and successfully uniting his meridians could his life force index break through the shackle of 3,600 and continue its rapid ascent.
And that next path was the Fifth-level Meridian Realm.
Without hesitation, Qin Feng opened the Imperial Trading House. In the vast list of goods, he typed in the name of the cultivation technique he had long coveted.
Soon, a line of golden text appeared before his eyes.
[Peerless Technique: Great Sun Qi Meridian Method]
[Description: An advanced cultivation technique for the Great Sun Acupoint Opening Method. Practicing this method allows one to merge the 360 opened Great Sun Acupoints in pairs, ultimately condensing them into the one and only Great Sun Primordial Acupoints and laying the strongest possible foundation for advancing to the Sixth Level of Soaring Realm.]
[Requirement: Mastery of the Great Sun Acupoint Opening Method.]
[Price: 7,000 Contribution Points]
’Seven thousand Contribution Points...’
Qin Feng’s current balance was only 1,209 Contribution Points.
’But I’m close.’
His gaze returned to the registration information for the Canaan Newcomer Cup.
According to the rules, the Newcomer Cup was held every ten years and was split into different divisions: Fourth Level, Fifth Level, Sixth Level, and so on.
To incentivize the students, the champion of each division would receive a huge reward of 10,000 Contribution Points.
’With my current strength, I should have no problem taking first place in the Fourth Level Division.’
’Once I get my hands on those ten thousand Contribution Points, the startup funds for the Fifth-level Meridian Realm will be completely sorted out.’
The plan was clear.
With that, Qin Feng’s mood relaxed.
He closed the Imperial Trading House and had Hammer pull up the recent hot topics from the campus forums. At the same time, he opened the Canaan Star Martial Arts Private Domain Forum on the Subspace Network, intending to catch up on what had happened in the outside world during his seventeen-year absence.
Like a hermit who had been isolated from the world for ages, he quietly scrolled through post after post, savoring the long-lost connection to the mundane world.
Before long, his eyes were drawn to a popular post with a rather eye-catching title. As he read on, he couldn’t help but let out a laugh.
[Post Title]: #Total Scoundrel! Senior Zhou Run Still Squatting in the Fourth Level Division, Says He’s Going to Fleece the Newbies One Last Time!#
[OP]: Insider here! According to reliable sources, Senior Zhou Run—the guy who’s been dominating all the championships in the Fourth Level Division for years—said in a recent public interview that he has finished opening all the acupoints for the Nine Revolutions Golden Acupoints. His life force index has officially reached the Perfection level of 3,600. But he doesn’t plan on advancing immediately. Instead, he’s preparing to enter this year’s Newcomer Cup one last time to swipe the champion’s reward of 10,000 Contribution Points as startup funds for his push into the Fifth-level Meridian Realm!
[1F - Disciplinary Committee Member]: Shocking! Senior Zhou Run is such a shameless scoundrel! Does he have any dignity left?! Give the newcomers a chance to live!
[2F - AnonymousGambler]: 6666, I knew he’d fight again! I’ve already gone all-in with my entire net worth on Zhou Run winning! My villa by the sea depends on this!
[3F - TheRationalist]: To be fair, isn’t the only reason the last few competitions have only had "Crowned Newcomer Kings" because old monsters like Zhou Run and Zheng Dong, who practice top-grade Acupoint Opening Techniques, refuse to move on? Their life force indices have been high enough to crush everyone else for ages.
[4F - StopTheHateAbove]: Come on, who can blame him for practicing a top-grade Acupoint Opening Technique? It’s allowed by the rules; he’s not cheating. Besides, Senior Zhou Run already said this is his last time. After he scores this win, he’s moving on to the Fifth Level Division. We should just consider ourselves lucky to be witnessing a legend.
...
Qin Feng read through the replies—some teasing, some complaining, some worshipful—and the smile on his face grew wider.
Zhou Run. He was all too familiar with that name.
Years ago, he had rationally withdrawn from the Newcomer Cup right before the finals, and the champion and runner-up titles had been snapped up by Zhou Run and another old monster named Zheng Dong.
He never expected that after all these years, Zheng Dong, who was perhaps more concerned with his pride, would rather take on high-risk missions than deign to compete in the Fourth Level Division again. He had probably advanced to the Fifth-level Meridian Realm long ago.
But Senior Zhou Run was a different story. He was truly thick-skinned—pragmatic, just like Qin Feng himself—and showed up without fail every ten years to fleece the Newcomer Cup of its championship prize.
’This time, however, that prize won’t be so easy to get.’
A playful glint flashed in Qin Feng’s eyes. ’I’ve got my eye on that prize, too. We’ll just have to see who is stronger.’
He continued scrolling through the posts with great interest.
With the Canaan Newcomer Cup about to start, the forums were already flooded with hype threads.
The most popular of these were the "Top Championship Contender Rankings," jointly published by several data analysis teams and betting companies based on the mission performance, historical combat records, and other data on well-known students.
Qin Feng glanced at the rankings for the Fourth Level Division. Zhou Run’s name was, unsurprisingly, at the very top, and the betting odds were absurdly low.
As for his own name, it had long since vanished from the list, completely forgotten after his seventeen-year absence.
He simply laughed it off.
Next, he opened a thread ranking the top competitors of the Fifth Level Division. A familiar name immediately jumped out at him.