Chapter 1122: Inner Breath Passage

"Reached the peak of the first level of the Saint Domain twenty years ago?" Zhang Xuan nodded, full of surprise.

Almost everyone who could enter the War Master Hall was a genius. For such a person to forcibly suppress their cultivation for twenty years without breaking through meant their accumulation at the same level had reached an appalling level!

"The reason this guy hasn't broken through is actually to break the record of the Inner Breath Hall!" Hearing their conversation, a war master glanced strangely at Zhang Xuan and said.

"The record of the Inner Breath Passage was set three hundred years ago by War Master Feng Moxiao, a full thirty-seven points. Breaking it won't be easy!" Hall Master Wei frowned.

In the Inner Breath Hall, ten points was an extremely high standard. Thirty-seven points meant one's true qi density was 3.7 times that of an ordinary war master—a terrifying result.

For that reason, no one had broken it in three hundred years.

This Shi Hao had endured for twenty years just to keep accumulating, striving to surpass it in one go, leaving his name in the Inner Breath Passage and making a name for himself.

Although Hall Master Wei trusted him greatly, breaking the record of the Inner Breath Passage was still extremely difficult—almost impossible.

"In the past, it wouldn't have been easy, but over the past six months, he's trained like crazy—hunting sacred beasts, gathering sacred herbs, nourishing his meridians and dantian... It's said that to purify his true qi, he even went underground into lava... After half a year, no one knows how much power he's accumulated! But he shouldn't be worse than War Master Feng from three hundred years ago!"

The war master from earlier said with a solemn expression.

Half a year ago, he too thought breaking the record was nearly impossible, but now... it was hard to say.

"This guy is really ruthless... I didn't expect he actually learned that technique!" Hall Master Wei paused, then shook his head.

"Technique?" Zhang Xuan was puzzled.

"It's a very profound technique in the Inner Breath Hall called the [Ocean-Dumping Art]. It's said that once mastered, one's true qi flows like pouring the ocean's water—inexhaustible... Only War Master Feng back then mastered it. This kid seems dead set on breaking the record..."

Hall Master Wei said.

As they were speaking, they saw light dancing on the wall of the passage before them.

"Look, the assessment has started..."

Someone shouted, and everyone looked over.

Whoosh!

With the light, numbers slowly jumped on the originally smooth wall, rising higher and higher, then quickly stopped... thirty-eight!

"He actually broke it..."

Seeing the number, everyone was stunned, even Hall Master Wei was full of surprise.

War Master Feng's record had stood for three hundred years without being broken, yet now it had been surpassed before their eyes.

"Seems he didn't disappoint my training..."

Hall Master Wei smiled.

He had spent no small effort on this Shi Hao over the years, and he truly was a genius.

The door slowly opened, and a young man walked out, his face slightly pale.

"Hall Master..."

Seeing him appear, Shi Hao bowed with clasped hands. Though he looked severely depleted, his back was as straight as a javelin, without any bend.

"Mm, to surpass War Master Feng and set a new record, you've done very well!" Hall Master Wei praised.

"Thank you for your guidance, Hall Master..." Shi Hao sighed in relief, his eyes full of excitement.

Breaking the record was a great affirmation for him.

"A score of thirty-eight means 3.8 times an ordinary war master. This record will probably be hard to break!"

"I think no one will succeed for three hundred years!"

"A record lasting centuries... impressive!"

...

The crowd buzzed with discussion.

Witnessing a record being set was a great inspiration for the other war masters.

"Master Sun, you can go in and try now..."

Seeing that this Shi Hao had broken the record in front of Master Sun, Hall Master Wei was also beaming with pride. He smiled and said.

Zhang Xuan nodded, said nothing more, pushed the door open, and walked in.

Seeing him enter the passage, Shi Hao looked over in confusion: "Hall Master, this Master Sun is..."

For the hall master to personally escort him, he must be extraordinary. But Shi Hao had seen all the war masters at the first level peak of the Saint Domain—why didn't he recognize this one?

"He's not a war master; he's an enlighter who helped the hall master greatly. He wants to test himself and check his cultivation," Hall Master Wei explained.

"An enlighter wants to test inner breath density? What a joke..."

Shi Hao sneered, his eyes full of disdain.

He had thought it was some formidable expert, but it turned out to be just an enlighter.

Enlighters were support professions, not strong in combat. Coming to test something that only war masters could pass—wasn't that a joke?

Not just him, the others also shook their heads.

An enlighter... too weak!

Beneath notice.

"Don't underestimate this Master Sun; his combat strength is formidable!" Seeing their expressions, Hall Master Wei said.

He had personally seen Master Sun in action—quick reactions, terrifying grasp of combat timing... But they had only exchanged two or three moves, so he couldn't tell if the other's true qi was dense or his inner breath strong.

Still, with such deep understanding of combat, his true qi shouldn't be too weak.

"Combat strength doesn't mean dense true qi... At the same level, almost no one can surpass a war master in true qi density!" Shi Hao showed strong confidence.

As one of the greatest geniuses of the Inner Breath Hall in three hundred years, he had the right to be proud and the capital for it.

"It's started..."

Someone else called out, and everyone looked up, wanting to see what score this guy, whom the hall master praised so highly, could achieve.

Buzz!

Light flickered on the wall, but no number appeared.

"No number? This guy—can't he even pierce the first stone wall?"

"Piercing the first stone wall gives ten points and passes the war master assessment... If he can't pierce it, naturally there's no score!"

"I thought he'd amaze everyone like Shi Hao, but now it seems... ordinary is ordinary!"

...

Seeing no number on the wall, everyone shook their heads, and even Hall Master Wei was a bit puzzled.

Given his performance in the fight earlier, passing with ten points shouldn't have been hard, right? Why was there no score?

Hadn't he started testing yet?

But no—since the wall's light flickered, the test had begun. Why was there nothing?

Creak!

Just as they were wondering, they heard the door open, and someone was about to come out.

Someone coming out meant the assessment was over.

Before the assessment ended, a number would definitely appear. Since none had appeared... it meant the other party really hadn't passed, just as everyone said—he hadn't even pierced the first wall...

"It seems this Master Sun is only strong in combat; his true qi isn't very dense..."

Hall Master Wei shook his head.

The Inner Breath Passage tested true qi density. Strong combat only meant good explosive power, which didn't necessarily correlate with true qi reserves or the quantity of true essence.

It was like the difference between sprinting and long-distance running.

A good sprinter might be terrible at long distances.

This Master Sun was formidable in combat and quick in reactions, but it seemed he could only burst out power momentarily and lacked endurance; otherwise, he couldn't have gotten zero points.

As he was thinking, the door opened, and Zhang Xuan walked out awkwardly.

"It's fine if you didn't pass... I'll take you to the library now!"

Thinking the other was embarrassed for failing, Hall Master Wei quickly stepped forward.

"These stone walls..."

Zhang Xuan pointed inside, hesitating.

"Don't worry, it's fine. You're not a war master, so there's no need to measure by war master standards!" Hall Master Wei smiled, afraid that Zhang Xuan hadn't pierced even one layer and would be embarrassed to say it.

He was just an enlighter. Even if he weren't from the War Master Hall, with such incredible enlightening skills, they would give him a green light all the way.

"But..."

Zhang Xuan scratched his head.

"That's just an assessment; don't take it to heart!" Hall Master Wei hurriedly said.

"Assessment? Oh, the formation can repair itself, right?" Zhang Xuan looked over.

"Mm, it tests true qi density by the thickness of the wall pierced. Even if damaged, it can repair itself—no need to worry!" Hall Master Wei smiled.

"That's good..." Zhang Xuan sighed in relief and stopped dwelling on it. "Let's go!"

Hall Master Wei nodded and led the way.

The Inner Breath Hall's library was not far from the passage. Hall Master Wei waved his hand, the formation opened, and the two entered.

"I thought he was some expert, but he can't even pass the first level..."

"Just a little enlighter trying to pass the Inner Breath Passage meant for war masters—how could it be that easy!"

"I wonder what his background is. With this strength, I could take him three at once. I think he's not really helping the hall master... probably some spoiled brat from a big family!"

Seeing the two enter the library, the War Master Hall crowd all shook their heads.

They, the war masters, had to pass the assessment to choose techniques. This guy didn't even get a score but was taken in by the hall master—such treatment was beyond their reach...

"Alright, he's not a war master, so it's normal he couldn't pass. Xiao Bo, I remember you wanted to bet with me last time, right? Now that I've finished my assessment, it's your turn. I want to see if you can surpass me and break my record!"

Interrupting the chatter, Shi Hao looked at a nearby war master.

"I... definitely can't break your record, but getting over twenty points shouldn't be hard!"

Questioned publicly, the war master named Xiao Bo's face turned red.

"I remember you scored twenty-one last time. I won't bully you—if you can exceed twenty-three this time, you win, and our previous bet still counts!" Shi Hao laughed.

"Alright!" After a moment's thought, Xiao Bo took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and pushed open the door toward the passage.

He had barely entered halfway when he suddenly stopped, trembling as if he had seen a ghost.

"This, this... how is this possible?"

A sharp voice cried out directly.

Seeing Xiao Bo so shocked, everyone was puzzled. Shi Hao moved to his side in a flash: "What's wrong?"

As he spoke, he too looked through the half-open door. His face turned pale, his pupils contracted, and he couldn't help stepping back a few paces, his body stiff.