Chapter 39: Chapter 39: Flying Swallow Step Minor Achievement

Becoming a Cultivated True Master.

Not only could one’s lifespan be greatly extended,

but their physical body would also become incredibly powerful!

A single strike could sever rivers and shatter buildings!

And a Grand True Master who had reached the legendary Realm of True Mastery...

...could even faintly alter the heavens themselves!

It could be said that those who pursued Cultivation were no longer ordinary people.

Of course, the minimum requirement for a Cangyun Sect recommendation was Force Integration.

Without achieving Force Integration, no amount of skill in Fist Techniques was of any use.

Therefore, in Luo Kun’s eyes, no matter how outstanding Jiang Che was, his Root Bone determined that he could never achieve Force Integration. Even reaching the Iron Skin Realm would be difficult; the Stone Skin Realm was his absolute limit.

Thus, the only one with any real hope of going to the Cangyun Sect was Gong Yulei.

’Sigh... if only Shao Jianbo were willing to pursue Force Integration... this opportunity should have been his.’

Luo Kun suddenly thought of his second disciple, Shao Jianbo—a man of peerless Talent who had reached the Peak of Iron Skin at a young age.

However, his ambitions seemed to lie elsewhere. Luo Kun had tried to persuade him many times to no avail and had eventually given up.

With this in mind, he entered the back room.

He felt around under the bed and pulled out a palm-sized wooden box.

After blowing off the thick layer of dust, he gently opened it.

Inside was an Ink Jade Token engraved with the character for "Cang."

Luo Kun carefully picked up the Token, a cool sensation spreading from his fingertips.

He caressed the patterns on its surface, his expression a mixture of nostalgia and melancholy.

"Fifty years have passed in the blink of an eye... I wonder how Junior Sister Ye is doing now..."

He sighed.

He often found himself reminiscing about his days in the Cangyun Sect.

Most of that time was spent in arduous Cultivation,

and he was often scolded by his master.

But there were happy times as well.

Though he had long since left the Cangyun Sect,

deep in his heart,

Luo Kun still considered himself a part of it.

Scouting for outstanding disciples to send to the Sect...

...was also a responsibility he felt.

Besides the generous material rewards from the Cangyun Sect for a successful recommendation,

a part of him also yearned to prove himself.

Even though he had failed back then and couldn’t stay,

if his own disciple could make a name for themself,

it would mean that he wasn’t such a failure after all!

...

...

The next day.

Jiang Che arrived at the Martial Arts Hall.

As he passed through the Apprentice Hall, he noticed the apprentices looking at him differently.

Some with envy, others with jealousy.

It turned out the news of him receiving a Qi Supplement Pill and becoming an Honored Guest Elder of the Shao Mansion through sheer "dog-shit luck" had already spread throughout the Martial Arts Hall.

Everyone was marveling at how good his luck was.

When he reached the Disciple Courtyard, Jiang Che noticed that the other three disciples wore much more serious expressions as they trained.

It was as if they were secretly competing with one another.

Seeing Jiang Che approach, Gong Yulei and Lin Xue’er shot him a glance before ignoring him completely.

Zhang Xiong, however, walked right up to him.

"Your Qi Blood was too low before, so we’ve never sparred. Now that it’s nearly at my level, want to give it a try?"

Jiang Che nodded.

He had never fought one of his peers from the Martial Arts Hall since breaking through to the Bull Skin Realm.

Although he had faced a green-eyed monster, a Black Beast, a Young Servant from Li Yuanwai’s Mansion, and a flower thief out in the world,

and could be considered a veteran of many battles,

he had no idea what it would be like to fight a fellow disciple.

The two took their fighting stances, facing each other.

Combat was all about sensing the flow of qi, finding that one moment of weakness in your opponent’s Spirit to launch an attack.

Zhang Xiong stared at Jiang Che, who appeared relaxed but had no openings anywhere on his body.

He mentally rehearsed numerous lines of attack, but after thinking them through, he realized every single one would be blocked!

The longer he waited, the greater the pressure on him grew.

It was this familiar feeling again!

Sweat began to bead on his forehead.

’I can’t wait any longer!’

Zhang Xiong took a step forward and unleashed his most familiar move, "Overlapping Waves"!

His figure flickered, and his fists crashed forward like ocean waves, one after another.

But Jiang Che, on the other side, effortlessly and gracefully dismantled every one of his attacks.

He felt like he was punching cotton.

He had strength but nowhere to apply it.

The more he fought, the more unnerved he became.

He had originally thought that because Jiang Che’s Qi Blood had grown so slowly, his focus had drifted from his Fist Technique.

But he never expected his opponent’s Fist Technique to have reached such a level!

After several more rounds of his attacks were neutralized, Zhang Xiong finally couldn’t hold back and used a strange move.

His fists turned to palms as he continuously attacked some of Jiang Che’s weaker points.

His speed increased until Jiang Che carelessly took a palm to the chest, stumbling back a few steps.

"Senior Brother Zhang, you’re still amazing. I lost,"

Jiang Che said with a smile.

Although he hadn’t used his Heart Stream, he had still been trying his best.

Zhang Xiong’s strength was indeed considerable.

His Qi Blood was dense, and his Fist Techniques were refined.

Of course, if he had activated Heart Stream, the result would have been different.

Zhang Xiong would have appeared full of holes, and he could have been defeated in three moves.

And if it were a life-and-death battle where all dirty tricks were on the table,

it might only have taken a single move.

But this was just a spar; there was no need for that.

It was enough to get a rough idea of his own level.

But Zhang Xiong shook his head.

"You didn’t lose. The move that defeated you was from my family’s Martial Arts. If we were only using Cloud-Stacking Fist, I couldn’t have beaten you."

Jiang Che smiled. "Senior Brother Zhang, your family’s Martial Arts are part of your Ability, of course. Don’t sell yourself short."

"In my opinion, as long as it defeats the opponent, any move is fair. After all, once you’re out in the Jianghu, no one’s going to care if your techniques are from your family or not."

Jiang Che recalled how he had used Lime Powder, poison, a Hand Stab, a spiked vest, and other methods to defeat the Young Servant, ultimately winning as the weaker party.

Otherwise, he would have been the one to die.

The ultimate purpose of learning Martial Arts is simply to defeat one’s opponent.

In Jiang Che’s previous life, even some martial artists would use guns on the battlefield.

After all, no matter how fast your blade, can it be faster than a bullet?

If you limit yourself for the sake of some ’spirit of the Martial Dao,’ aren’t you just missing the forest for the trees?

Zhang Xiong listened and mulled it over, but in the end, he still felt it was twisted logic.

He didn’t argue. Everyone has their own philosophy.

His Martial Dao was about defeating opponents head-on, forcing them into sincere submission!

The next day, Jiang Che arrived at the Martial Arts Hall.

Just as he reached the Disciple Courtyard, he found a crowd gathered, and he couldn’t see what they were doing.

He walked over and saw Gong Yulei standing in the middle of the crowd with his eyes closed.

His Qi Blood was currently raging, and his skin had taken on a faint gray-green hue, its texture like stone.

Master Luo Kun was holding his wrist, a smile on his face.

When Zhang Xiong saw Jiang Che arrive, he whispered, "Gong Yulei broke through to the Stone Skin Realm."

Jiang Che nodded.

Gong Yulei had already been on the verge, so a breakthrough was to be expected.

Before long, Gong Yulei opened his eyes.

He looked at Jiang Che and saw that his face was calm, showing no emotional reaction to his breakthrough.

’Just putting on an act.’

Slightly annoyed, he glared at him.

Jiang Che paid him no mind and went to the side to begin his own training.

After finishing his training early, he returned home.

In the Jiang Family courtyard.

Jiang Che strapped sandbags to his legs, activated his Heart Stream, and used the Flying Swallow Step to jump and move continuously across the training posts.

A quarter of an hour later, he jumped down.

After untying the sandbags from his legs, he sat cross-legged on a cattail hassock under the eaves.

It was one he had bought to imitate his master. It was convenient for meditating right after training.

He raised his hand and summoned the panel.

[Name: Jiang Che]

[Age: 16]

[Realm: Qi Blood First Layer · Mid-stage Bull Skin Realm]

[Qi Blood Martial Dao: Cloud-Stacking Fist Minor Achievement (1/200), Flying Swallow Step Minor Achievement (1/200)]

[Skills: Body Refinement Entry Level (20/100), Calligraphy Minor Achievement (130/200), White Cloud Fist Perfection]

[Talent: Heart Stream, Omen]

’Flying Swallow Step has reached Minor Achievement. My speed has increased by about thirty percent. If I were to run into that flower thief again, I probably wouldn’t be in such a sorry state.’

Jiang Che thought to himself.

However, Flying Swallow Step was also a Qi Blood Martial Dao. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Now that he had cultivated it to the Minor Achievement realm, he could only continue to advance it after breaking through to the Stone Skin Realm.

Jiang Che looked at the panel and began to think about the next step in his Cultivation plan.

’Next, I’ll focus all my energy on cultivating [Body Refinement]. It’s a general skill, so I should be able to train it directly to Perfection...’

’I wonder what kind of Talent Skill will appear when it’s maxed out...’

A faint sense of anticipation grew in Jiang Che’s heart.