The outing was just a pretext arranged by the two Patriarchs for the pair to spend time alone. Since neither of them had any such intentions, there was naturally no need to continue.

A short while later, Fang Han escorted Wang Meng back to Songtao Pavilion. Soon after, Wang Zhengyang and Wang Meng bid their farewells and departed, leaving only Fang Han and Fang Lingyuan in the pavilion.

"What did you think of the Wang Family’s young lady? Did you two get along?"

Fang Lingyuan lifted his teacup and took a light sip. His gaze fell upon Fang Han, who stood silently to the side, as he asked in a warm voice.

"From my conversation with Miss Wang Meng, she has no such intentions."

Fang Han replied, his expression placid and unchanging.

"Is that so? Since she has no interest, then we’ll drop the matter. Why would our Fang Family’s Qilin’er ever have to worry about finding a worthy partner?"

"There are plenty of families in Liangshui City, and even in the surrounding towns, who would be willing to arrange a marriage with our Fang Family."

Hearing this, Fang Lingyuan tapped his fingertips twice on the armrest of the zitan wood chair, and a look of faint relief washed over him.

’That young lady, Wang Meng, has a special status, and the opportunity was rare, which is why I suddenly had the idea to play matchmaker. But now it seems I was too hasty.’

"I understand. Besides, I am devoted to the Martial Dao and do not wish to consider marriage so early,"

Fang Han nodded.

"Go on, then. Cultivate well. I was indeed too hasty in this matter. Don’t let such a trivial thing affect your mood. The Inner Qi Realm is your top priority right now."

Fang Lingyuan waved a hand, his tone once again becoming serious.

"Yes. I will take my leave now."

Fang Han exited Songtao Pavilion and headed down the corridor toward his Class A-10 Martial Arts Room.

He couldn’t shake a flicker of annoyance. After all, he’d been suddenly dragged into a matchmaking session, only to be rejected. Even though he had no intention of marrying early himself, it still stung.

He took a deep breath, forcefully suppressing the faint irritation.

As he pushed open the heavy door to the Martial Arts Room, the familiar scent of sandalwood and a deep silence washed over him, completely isolating him from the turmoil of the outside world.

He walked to the center of the room, tipped a longan-sized, richly fragrant Qi Blood Pill from a porcelain bottle he carried, and popped it into his mouth.

The elixir dissolved the moment it entered his stomach, instantly erupting into a scorching torrent of energy.

The Eightfold Root Bone Talent Amplification kicked in, igniting like a furnace. It efficiently converted the immense medicinal power into pure vital energy, causing it to surge and roar through his body.

RUMBLE—

The sound of his vital energy circulating was like muffled thunder rolling through his body, its power astonishing.

Under the guidance of the Crane Form cultivation technique, the immense energy transformed into countless invisible sledgehammers, furiously striking and tempering the 206 bones in his body as they assaulted the incomparably tough barrier.

Time slipped by unnoticed amidst his focused cultivation, and a whole day quickly passed.

"I couldn’t break through..."

Fang Han muttered to himself, his tone calm but laced with an almost imperceptible gravity.

’This bottleneck between Bone Refining and Inner Qi is truly formidable. Even with my Eightfold Root Bone Talent Amplification, I’ve spent two days and still haven’t broken through.’

On the third day, Fang Han once again took a Qi Blood Pill, condensed his vital energy, and assaulted the bottleneck.

His vital energy surged with a thunderous roar. The very air in the room seemed to turn thick and heavy, yet that barrier still stubbornly blocked his path.

On the fourth day, Fang Han continued his cultivation, assaulting the bottleneck.

The barrier trembled violently, as if it would shatter at any moment, but when his cultivation session ended for the day, the bottleneck remained intact.

’No wonder it’s compared to a heavenly chasm—a bottleneck that has trapped countless Martial Artists for a lifetime...’

Fang Han lamented internally.

The bottleneck between Bone Refining and Inner Qi was often compared to a heavenly chasm. Many Martial Artists were trapped by it, unable to break through for their entire lives.

With his Eightfold Root Bone Talent Amplification, his talent was arguably the best in all of Liangshui City. And yet, four full days had passed without a breakthrough.

Now he was beginning to understand why so many Martial Artists, throughout the ages, had compared this bottleneck to a heavenly chasm.

’With my Eightfold Root Bone Talent, a breakthrough is only a matter of time.’

Fang Han took a deep breath, suppressing the anxiety that had crept in after days of fruitless attempts.

Although this bottleneck was likened to a heavenly chasm, one that had trapped countless Martial Artists for a lifetime, preventing them from ever breaking through.

He believed that with his now Eightfold Root Bone Talent, a breakthrough was inevitable. He would absolutely not end up like those other Martial Artists, trapped forever, unable to advance.

Early on the morning of the fifth day, inside the Class A-10 Martial Arts Room.

Fang Han’s mind was focused and serene. He circulated his energy with the Crane Form, guiding the vast vital energy within him to temper the bones throughout his body, once again attempting to break the bottleneck.

Under his Eightfold Root Bone Talent Amplification, his vital energy surged like a great river, unleashing a deep, powerful rumble at an efficiency far beyond imagination.

Suddenly— 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

CRACK!

An extremely faint yet crisp sound, as if originating from the depths of his soul, erupted from within his body without any warning.

Like glass struck by a great hammer, the incomparably tough barrier between the Bone Refining Realm and the Inner Qi Realm—the very one that had thwarted him for days—shattered violently under the force of his power, which had been accumulated to its absolute peak.

BOOM—!!!

With the obstruction gone, the immense, long-suppressed vital energy was instantly freed. Like a primordial flood bursting through a dam, it roared and surged with unprecedented fury, rushing madly toward his Lower Dantian and Qihai Acupoints.

The Qihai Acupoint was like a bottomless abyss, greedily devouring the surging torrent of vital energy.

The vital energy spun at high speed within the acupoint, compressing and refining, emitting a hum like a raging storm.

Fang Han’s entire body shuddered violently. His skin took on a jade-like luster, and a series of sharp, crackling pops echoed from deep within his bones, as dense as rain drumming on leaves.

A metamorphosis, a complete rebirth, was rapidly taking place.

After an unknown amount of time, when the vital energy had condensed and compressed to a certain critical point—

HUM!

In the deepest part of the Qihai Acupoint, a minuscule yet incredibly potent wisp of "qi" was silently born.

This wisp of "qi" was pale white, like smoke or mist, ethereal and unfixed, yet it possessed a profound quality that was both dense and heavy, yet extraordinarily nimble.

Wherever it passed, a sensation of power far purer and more formidable than mere vital energy welled up within him.

’I’ve broken through to the Ninth Grade Internal Qi Realm!’

A sharp light shot from the depths of Fang Han’s eyes, like two bolts of cold lightning in a dark room.

A look of irrepressible excitement flooded his face.

He had finally shattered the heavenly chasm that trapped countless Martial Artists, officially stepping into the Ninth Grade Internal Qi Realm—a state that many pursued their entire lives yet never achieved.

’It took five days!’

Fang Han slowly clenched his fists, feeling the faint yet extraordinarily nimble wisp of Inner Qi in his Dantian and Qi Sea. As he felt the reborn power and lightness in his body, his heart swelled with emotion and pride.

Many people spent their entire lives unable to cross this threshold. Even the talented were often stuck for years, even decades.

And he, from the moment he started his assault to the final breakthrough, had taken a grand total of only five days.

The terrifying cultivation efficiency brought by the Eightfold Root Bone Talent Amplification was, at this moment, showcased in all its glory.

SWISH!

Without being summoned, the system panel automatically appeared in Fang Han’s field of view.

[Host: Fang Han]

[Root Bone Talent Amplification: 8x (Level 4 Amplification requires 10,000 silver)]

[Swordsmanship Talent Amplification: 8x (Level 4 Amplification requires 10,000 silver)]

[Stepping Talent Amplification: 8x (Level 4 Amplification requires 10,000 silver)]

[Wealth: 52 silver]

At the same time, a stream of information flowed into Fang Han’s mind.