Longevity by Grinding Skills

This expert of the Blood Exchange Realm, whom Liu Tianyu had spoken of, was now curled up in a wheelchair. His right leg was wrapped in tiger skin from the knee down, and the festering wound gave off the stench of rotting flesh.

"The disciple recommended by Liu Tianyun?"

He extended his only three remaining fingers, his yellowed nails scratching across the Blood Cicada Order.

"That traitor who deceived his master and destroyed his ancestors... did he say anything else?"

’Deceived his master and destroyed his ancestors?!’

A heavy feeling settled in Xu Yunfan’s chest. ’Hasn’t Liu Tianyun just thrown me into a pit of fire?’

Lin Hanyi saw the look on Xu Yunfan’s face and said in a low voice, "Master and his junior brother never really got along, so he always acts like this..."

Xu Yunfan’s expression eased considerably. After a moment of thought, he replied, "Liu... He is only at the realm of a First-Level Martial Artist now."

"A First-Level Martial Artist?"

Chen Tiangang fell silent for a moment, then suddenly burst out laughing. The sound waves of his laughter made the entire hall tremble.

After a long while, his laughter slowly subsided. He let out a strange sigh and raised his eyes to properly size up Xu Yunfan.

Suddenly, his eyes widened. With a light slap on his chair, his body, once curled in the wheelchair, shot forward.

Leaning on a staff, Chen Tiangang stood before Xu Yunfan and began to press and knead his muscles and bones.

Xu Yunfan’s face tensed and his body went rigid. If he hadn’t caught himself in time, he almost would have smashed down with his hammer.

"Muscles like wound silk, bones like refined steel... An excellent specimen! A Third-Level Martial Artist!"

The Elder Sect Leader laughed heartily, his expression filled with delight. "That old dog... he actually did one good thing before the end."

He looked up, meeting Xu Yunfan’s gaze directly. "Do you truly wish to join the Celestial Cicada Sect?"

Xu Yunfan was unafraid. He met the old man’s gaze calmly, bowed slightly, and clasped his hands. "Naturally, I wish to join the Celestial Cicada Sect."

Chen Tiangang nodded slightly. After a moment of contemplation, he said slowly, "Rest assured, this entire Thunder Accumulation Mountain is the domain of the Celestial Cicada Sect. It may look a bit dilapidated and simple.

But at the foot of the mountain, the sect owns one hundred thousand mu of farmland, six thousand tenant farmers, and a total of eight hundred servants and Outer Disciples. There are twenty-three Inner Sect Disciples. As a True Disciple, you will want for nothing in terms of food, clothing, and expenses. There will be no shortage of elixirs to aid your cultivation, so you may focus on your training. However, as a disciple of my Celestial Cicada Sect, you must perform one task for the sect every three months. Is this acceptable?"

Without hesitation, Xu Yunfan knelt on the ground. THUD! THUD! THUD! He kowtowed three times.

"Master, please accept this disciple’s obeisance!"

Chen Tiangang was overjoyed, cackling with laughter.

"Hanyi, bring the *Celestial Cicada Force* scripture! Today, I will personally expound upon the scripture for your new sixth junior brother!"

---

CRACK!

Hearing from his junior sister, Chu Xuan, that Chen Tiangang was going to personally expound upon the scripture for Xu Yunfan, the jade cup in Ning Wuque’s hand was suddenly crushed. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

A faint smile remained on his lips, but his eyes were filled with an icy coldness.

"Junior Sister, you shouldn’t eavesdrop when Master is imparting his skills to others."

Hearing Senior Brother Ning Wuque’s gentle words, Chu Xuan retorted, a little indignantly, "Master is being biased! That big oaf is just a Third-Level Martial Artist. Aren’t you also a Third-Level Martial Artist who has reached Great Success in muscles, bones, and skin? And your looks... you’re so much more handsome than him."

Ning Wuque’s eyes flickered. The sharp line of his jaw was prominent on his turned face, making Chu Xuan’s eyes shine as she gazed at him.

"Junior Sister, it’s not polite to attack someone’s appearance."

"You’re still the best, Senior Brother—kind and upright. That big oaf looks like a total bore. And carrying that huge heavy hammer around... he’s definitely full of bad intentions."

「In the Ancestral Hall.」

As the silk scroll detailing the Celestial Cicada Force was unrolled, Chen Tiangang stomped his broken leg heavily on the ground. The refined steel frame hidden inside his prosthesis shattered the floor tiles, and he stood steadily on his maimed limb.

"Watch closely!"

The Elder Sect Leader’s spine suddenly vibrated like a bowstring. His stooped body straightened, section by section. When his seventh vertebra protruded like a blade’s edge, his mutilated right arm became a blur of motion, and a copper bell five paces away exploded with a deafening BOOM.

Splintered fragments embedded themselves in the pillars and beams, the broken surfaces showing spiral patterns. This was the destructive power generated purely by the vibration of his muscles.

"The Celestial Cicada Force trains muscles, bones, and skin simultaneously, and all can be brought to Great Success. However, its primary focus is Bone Training. By channeling force through the bones in a cascading, oscillating wave, you can easily pierce gold and stone. If you have the chance to reach Perfection, your bones will become as hard as refined steel and as resilient as fetal jade. Its power will reach an unbelievable level.

"Furthermore, it can unify the three training aspects into a single whole, laying the foundation for the Outer Three Harmonies. Cultivating the methods of the Outer Three Harmonies will then come naturally. After breaking through to the Outer Three Harmonies, you can begin to practice the true core ultimate skill of the Celestial Cicada Sect: the Horizontal Training True Skill, Celestial Cicada Robe."

Chen Tiangang tore his sleeve, revealing the writhing muscle fibers on his arm.

"When the three aspects are unified, every inch of your flesh and blood can store power. Trained to the extreme, your breath will be like an arrow, your stomp will crack stone, and every move you make will possess the might to tear apart dragons and tigers alive."

He suddenly grabbed Xu Yunfan by the throat, his thumb pressing just below his Adam’s apple.

"Do you know how to hold your breath? Hmm? You’ve practiced a Cross Training Skill? Good, very good! You’re a perfect fit for my Celestial Cicada Sect!"

Xu Yunfan’s entire body tensed. He almost reached for his Gilded Mace to swing at him.

The instant excruciating pain erupted from his windpipe, Xu Yunfan instinctively contracted the muscles in his chest and abdomen.

Chen Tiangang’s frenzied laughter exploded by his ear.

"Yes! Treat every muscle like a bowstring! Contract your intercostals by a third! Lower your diaphragm another inch!"

"..."

For nearly a month afterward, Xu Yunfan buried himself in the arduous cultivation of the Celestial Cicada Force. His original Iron Bridge Town Bone Training was gradually integrated by the Celestial Cicada Force.

Today, Xu Yunfan, who was never seen without his iron box, was bare-chested. As he threw a punch, his arm could be seen to abruptly lengthen by a fraction.

The muscles on his back coiled like dragons, and beads of sweat rolled down his bronze-colored skin.

His right arm suddenly emitted a dense series of bone cracks. The entire arm bone seemed to advance section by section like a living creature. As his fist cut through the air, it created a sharp whistle—this was the unique method of exerting force characteristic of the Celestial Cicada Force after one has reached the introductory level and integrated the bones of the entire body.

BANG!

At that moment, the sound of his bones colliding was as crisp and clear as shattering jade beads, and the speed of his punch increased by several degrees.

A wooden stake three paces away exploded on impact. Amidst the splinters, fine vibration marks could be seen around the edge of the fist imprint.

Xu Yunfan retracted his fist and exhaled. Beneath his skin, dark red lines of blood appeared and vanished like slithering snakes—a sign that he had pushed the Iron Bridge Town Bone Training Art to its absolute limit.

The Iron Bridge Town Bone Training Chapter was surprisingly compatible with the Celestial Cicada Force. Or rather, the Celestial Cicada Force was like a melting furnace; no matter what kind of Bone Strengthening Skill one had practiced, the Celestial Cicada Force could still forge it all into a single, unified whole.

’As expected of a technique from a former first-rate sect, it truly has a deep foundation. The efficiency of this kung fu’s Bone Training is more than just a notch above that of Iron Bridge Pass.’

’You have reached the introductory level in your cultivation of Celestial Cicada Force.’

’Celestial Cicada Force: 0/500 (Introductory)’

’Effects: Minor Bone Force Concentration, Nourishes Bones and Restores Vitality, Relaxes Muscles and Bones, Initial Insight into Bone Force, Bone-Vibrations Like a Mosquito’s Hum, Use Bone to Lead Muscle.’

In an instant, wisps of a warm current crawled over every bone in his body like ants, and the unbearably itchy sensation made Xu Yunfan’s face twitch.

In the memories that surged into his mind, he saw himself, as he had for the past month, smearing Secret Medicine all over his body every day, soaking in Bone Training medicinal baths, and cultivating the Celestial Cicada Force to consume the medicinal power and drive it deep into his bones.

However, this process was extended over a full two and a half years. Compared to Ning Wuque, who reached the introductory level in just half a year, the aptitude shown in the vision was indeed worlds apart.