Longevity by Grinding Skills

Lianbao Mountain, the Melt Soldier Dao.

"Your eighty-one bone apertures are originally of the Upper Grade. But fatally, your three Jade Pillow Bones have been stained black-gold by the aftershock of a Heavy Hammer. What a pity. Your path has diverged from our sect’s Melt Soldier Dao. There’s no turning back. You should go."

"..."

Inside the White Ape Sect on Changmei Mountain, a large, bearded man with extremely long limbs—his arms nearly touching the ground—stood barefoot, his feet looking almost like another pair of hands. He sized up Xu Yunfan from head to toe.

"Frankly, with your realm of Great Mastery of Tendons and Skin and your skill as a Second-Level Martial Artist, you could become a Tributor in our sect."

Xu Yunfan asked, "Can I practice the Martial Arts of the White Ape Sect?"

The bearded man shook his head slightly. "No. The Martial Arts of the White Ape Sect require one to start practicing from a young age, constantly stretching the tendons and bones to develop a supple ape-like body. Your physique is already set, your bones and tendons fully formed. To try and practice it now... would be harder than ascending to the heavens."

"..."

Xu Yunfan performed a respectful fist-and-palm salute. "Thank you for informing me, Sect Leader."

Watching Xu Yunfan’s departing figure, the bearded man stroked his whiskers and shook his head slightly. ’Such a pity for a fine talent. At his age, his Kung Fu lacks a proper system.’

"Senior Brother, I heard from a disciple that someone came from outside the mountain to seek apprenticeship? I don’t recall it being the day we open our doors to accept new disciples yet."

A somewhat weak voice sounded from behind the bearded man. He turned to see it was Liu Xiong, his face pale, his aura feeble, and his steps unsteady.

"Junior Brother, you should go rest. Healing your injuries is what’s important; you don’t need to trouble yourself with these matters. It was just someone who started his training late coming to seek a master. His aptitude is decent, but he’s already missed the formative window for our White Ape Body."

The Sect Leader frowned, stepping forward to support Liu Xiong.

"If you’re not well, don’t come wandering about. Do you think a Divine Weapon is so easy to fight for? That Old Demon Buddha from the Thousand Buddha Temple has probably holed up in Qingzhou. We need to find a way to report this to the Central State and have them send someone to handle it. We shouldn’t get involved."

"Yes..."

...

At the foot of the mountain, Xu Yunfan stuffed the last handful of alfalfa into his date-red horse’s mouth.

The spirited steed, bought in Changyi for nearly a hundred taels of silver, nuzzled his palm affectionately. Its mane glowed with a dark red luster in the twilight.

For the past two months, this date-red horse had carried him across nearly the entire five-hundred-li radius of Changyi. Its horseshoes, polished to a gleam by the official road’s stone slabs, marked it as a rare and fine steed.

What a headache.

It was just as Liu Tianyun had said. These sects placed immense importance on one’s origins, and most preferred to nurture disciples from a young age. Many martial arts required a pure and untainted body to learn. Who else was like Xu Yunfan, who could obtain a new Kung Fu and forcibly master its basics using his Attribute Panel?

From Cyan Lotus Mountain to Cangwu Peak, behind the towering archways of the sects that pierced the clouds, he had found the same arrogant faces.

Last night at the inn, he’d heard that a young master from a noble family had merely presented a formal letter of introduction and was welcomed up the mountain in a sedan chair carried by twelve Inner Sect Disciples. In contrast, for a stray like him, even the menial laborers of the Outer Courtyard would want to investigate three generations of his family background. This was the treatment most unaffiliated, yet skilled martial artists like him—with their unknown origins—received.

If an ordinary Martial Artist were to practice a style that conflicted with their original Martial Arts, even if they managed to achieve some success, they would likely end up a contorted, grotesque mess.

Starting late with no family background, he simply couldn’t get his foot in the door.

But these past few days had made him understand why it was said that the sects of the Great Zhou Empire held a third of the world’s power. Along his journey, he saw that sects like the ones on Cyan Lotus Mountain and Cangwu Mountain occupied vast territories—not just entire mountains, but also hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland at their base.

They paid no taxes and turned over no grain. Qingzhou alone had more than a dozen such sects. No wonder Li Haomiao had looked so displeased when speaking of them. And one could only imagine the state of affairs with Great Zhou’s top Nine Great Sects.

In a sense, they were kingdoms within a kingdom.

After feeding the horse and taking a drink from his waterskin, Xu Yunfan thought to himself, ’Perhaps I need to lower my standards. Maybe I should check out some of the smaller, more unique sects?’

The smaller sects in Qingzhou were in a weaker position. According to the requirements of the Great Zhou Mansion, third-rate sects had to pay taxes and tribute in grain. With these restrictions, their situation was naturally not as good as that of the Major Sects.

"Brother, I saw you were going to the Melt Soldier Dao to seek apprenticeship?"

Just as he was mounting his horse, preparing to head to the nearest small sect, a square-faced, saber-wielding man who exuded an air of righteousness emerged from the woods. He walked up to Xu Yunfan with a broad smile, the hem of his Profound-Colored Martial Attire dotted with bits of grass. His grin was thirty percent more eager than the Shopkeeper’s at the inn had been.

Xu Yunfan was a bit surprised and didn’t speak immediately. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"Don’t be nervous."

The man showed his empty hands. "My name is Zhang Tiehu, an Outer Sect Steward for Qixia Temple. A little while ago, at the foot of Lianbao Mountain, I saw you in the tavern asking about the recruitment rules for the various sects..."

He suddenly lowered his voice. "Are you looking for a proper sect to settle down in?"

The mountain wind swept up debris from the ground as Xu Yunfan stared at the Bronze Waist Token dangling from the man’s hip.

The token was carved with a Cloud Pattern, but the two characters for ’Qixia’ in the center looked freshly engraved. Around the edges, traces of old, unpolished characters remained.

Xu Yunfan said, "And what are the particulars?"

"Of course, of course there are particulars! I specialize in this line of business, so naturally, I know all the ins and outs."

"Three hundred taels for the referral fee, and I’ll guarantee you direct entry into the Inner Sect."

Zhang Tiehu took a half-step closer, a piece of a sheepskin scroll sliding out from his sleeve. "Qixia Temple may not be one of the thirteen major sects of Qingzhou, but the Flowing Cloud Thirteen Forms was once a profound Martial Art that made everyone take notice. Though it has declined quite a bit, it’s still quite famous here in Qingzhou..."

Xu Yunfan sized up the saber-wielding man. From the looks of it, he hadn’t even reached the level of a First-Level Martial Artist; at most, he was at the First Level Minor Achievement stage.

He had encountered many men at this level of Martial Arts over the past month or so.

In other words, in the Martial Arts circles of Qingzhou’s Mortal World, most of these Mortal Wandering Heroes were at such a Realm. It wasn’t that Martial Masters who had reached First Level Great Mastery didn’t exist, but they were rare.

Traveling all over Qingzhou, he found that First-Level Martial Artists were mostly holed up cultivating within sects or had settled down in cities. He had only encountered ten or twenty on the road, and most of them traveled with a clear purpose, unlike the aimlessly wandering Mortal Wandering Heroes.

To train a Martial Art to the level of Great Success required exceptional aptitude and sufficient resources. Naturally, those who achieved it all had proper backing.

This Zhang Tiehu before him, however, was rather interesting.

"A fifty-tael deposit." After a moment of deliberation, he opened his hand and counted out the silver. "The rest upon entering the mountain?"

"No problem, that’s how it should be!"

Beaming, Zhang Tiehu accepted the silver, bit down on it, and examined the tooth marks.

"Brother—oh, no... Junior Brother! From now on, we can consider ourselves fellow disciples!"

The corner of Xu Yunfan’s mouth twitched slightly. He gave a small nod. "Then please lead the way, Senior Brother."

As dusk deepened, the two men, leading the horse, passed through a Chaotic Burial Mound, followed a winding, narrow path, and circled onto a barren mountain.

Zhang Tiehu suddenly stopped and pointed to a few specks of firelight in the distance.

"We’re here."

Xu Yunfan looked up and saw the lights hanging halfway up the mountainside, like a few red lanterns suspended in the night sky.