To celebrate Ling Xiao's return as a Mystic Master, Meng Xiyun and Bai Yuxi prepared a feast of fine wine and food, ready to reward him handsomely.
Ling Xiao sat with Luo Qingshuang on a stone bench in the courtyard.
Ling Xiao took in the splendidly dressed and graceful Luo Qingshuang, his heart fluttering. He couldn't help but smile, "Little fat girl, are you attracted to me and won't marry me?"
In his previous life, although Ling Xiao hadn't lost his virginity, he was a playboy, attracting countless beauties. This life also carried on his unruly personality.
Luo Qingshuang spat, "You're so shameless! I heard you were injured, so I came to see you out of kindness." Her face flushed red, and she spoke with a hint of incoherence.
Since her defeat by Ling Xiao again, her clothes had only been torn in a few places, leaving her body completely unharmed. This showed that Ling Xiao had no murderous intentions towards her; otherwise, she wouldn't be standing here so intact. After that defeat, a shadow inexplicably appeared in her mind.
Last night, her father had spoken to her, and his tone hinted at a desire for her to approach Ling Xiao. Luo Qingshuang was inexplicably delighted; she had been worried about not having the chance to see Ling Xiao. So, early in the morning, she came to apologize to Ling Xiao and, at the same time, to see if his injuries had healed. However, when she saw Bai Yuxi running out of Ling Xiao's room, she felt a pang of bitterness, as if something she loved had been snatched away by someone else. But when she discovered that Ling Xiao had not only recovered but had once again become a Xuanzhe, she was even more shocked. It seemed as if just a few days ago, he had only been an eighth-level martial artist. Such a rapid advancement! She remembered that it had taken her a year and a half to advance from eighth-level martial artist to Xuanzhe!
However, considering that Ling Xiao had already broken through to the Xuanshi level, she wasn't too surprised that he had only returned to Xuanzhe. Ling Xiao curled her lips and said lightly, "I'm injured because of you. You have to take responsibility for this!"
"What does this have to do with me?" Luo Qingshuang said aggrievedly. She had originally wanted to apologize to this jerk, but who knew he hadn't the slightest bit of manliness and was so petty. She couldn't help but feel annoyed, but at the same time, she felt a little bit fond of this feeling.
"That's not what I meant. First of all, if you hadn't attacked me in the restaurant, I wouldn't have been retaliated against, and then I wouldn't have been injured. That bastard who attacked me would have been dead long ago, so how could I have been injured?" Ling Xiao said angrily. Thinking of this woman's unreasonable outburst that day, he really wanted to pin her down and give her a good spanking.
Luo Qingshuang said angrily, "Hmph, who told you to be so annoying!"
"I'm annoying? What's annoying about me? First, I didn't spy on you bathing. Second, I didn't touch your breasts. Third..." Ling Xiao retorted nonstop. Before he could finish, Luo Qingshuang's face darkened, and she drew the soft sword from her waist with her backhand.
"Hey... if you have something to say, just talk it out. Why resort to swords and guns? It's really beneath a girl's modesty," Ling Xiao said timidly, stepping back and waving her hand.
Luo Qingshuang glared at Ling Xiao, then burst into laughter. Her incredibly beautiful face made one gasp in admiration.
"That's right. You should smile more, that'll make you look better," Ling Xiao praised generously.
"What do you care?" Luo Qingshuang said unhappily, then lowered her chin slightly and said in a mosquito-like voice, "I'm sorry."
"What? What did you say?" Ling Xiao's breakthrough to the Xuan realm had heightened all her senses, so she could naturally hear Luo Qingshuang's apology, but he pretended not to hear, teasing the girl.
Luo Qingshuang blushed, yelled "I'm sorry..." at Ling Xiao, then turned and fled as swiftly as a swallow. Ling Xiao rubbed his ear and muttered to himself as he watched Luo Qingshuang run away, "This girl isn't bad. If I could keep her as my personal maid, she'd be a perfect match for Yu Xi."
If the young masters of the various families in Meteorite City heard this, they'd probably kill Ling Xiao with kitchen knives. Who wouldn't want to marry such a beauty and raise her like a child? Yet, this guy only gave her the status of a maid. What a foolish dream!
During dinner, Ling Zhan learned that his son had become a Xuanzhe again. While happy for him, he also secretly cursed himself for his slow cultivation. After more than half a month, he had only broken through one meridian, and it would take many days to reach the second. Compared to his son, he was a world apart. Ling Xiao seemed to sense his father's frustration. After dinner, he followed his father to the study. He then took out a half-thousand-year-old black ginseng king and placed it in front of Ling Zhan, saying, "Dad, this half-thousand-year-old black ginseng king should help speed up the process of breaking through the meridians."
Ling Zhan took the thousand-year-old black ginseng king as if it were a treasure and asked, "This... where did you get it? Thousand-year-old black ginseng kings are rare in Lingcao Hall!"
Black ginseng under five hundred years old are generally common, but those over five hundred years old, reaching the entry level, are rare. This thousand-year-old black ginseng king is even rarer, and its value is even more precious.
Ling Xiao said, "I begged it from Grandpa."
Ling Zhan was stunned for a moment, then smiled bitterly, "You brat, you even dare to criticize Grandpa!"
Then he looked at the black ginseng king in his hand and said, "I'll give it to you. It's useless to me until you break through to the Xuanzhe level." He knew the black ginseng king was precious, possessing the ability to dredge the meridians, activate the collaterals, increase Xuan power, and prolong life, but it couldn't help open up the meridians! That's why he refused.
Ling Xiao stopped him, saying, "Dad, keep it. Take a small tablet before each meridian surge. Combined with the Three-Part Return to Origin Qi, it has unexpected effects. It was thanks to the Black Ginseng King that I was able to break through the martial arts apprenticeship and become a Xuanzhe last night."
Ling Zhan no longer questioned his son's words. After a moment's hesitation, he carefully stored the one and a half Black Ginseng Kings, hoping to help him quickly break through the Twelve Meridians and regain his Xuanzhe status.
After leaving his father's study, Ling Xiao headed directly for the family inner courtyard. Yesterday, he had regained the privilege of returning to the inner courtyard. Therefore, he encountered no obstacles at the gate.
Arriving at the martial arts training ground, the young men and women of the eighteen generations of the Ling family, who were practicing martial arts, all looked at Ling Xiao with admiration. Only Ling Zhi, who had been defeated by Ling Xiao the previous day, had a glint of jealousy in his eyes.
Ling Xiao walked straight towards the attic to the south without stopping, then stopped in front of a three-story building. Across the door's plaque, three large characters, "Xuan Ji Ge," were carved in a vigorous, ethereal style. These three characters exuded a subtle, mystical aura, as if they held a profound secret.
Ling Xiao, a supremely skilled in his previous life, possessed exceptional vision. He glanced at the three characters and felt a slight jolt. He could tell at a glance that the person who had carved them was undoubtedly a formidable warrior. Each stroke held a chilling aura. He imagined a powerful warrior brandishing a spear. An inexplicable image flashed through his mind, fleeting.
An old voice rang out from the attic, "Can you understand these three characters?"
Ling Xiao bowed slightly, then said calmly, "These three characters were carved with a spear."
After a pause, another voice rang out from the attic, "You're quite good. Come in!"
Ling Xiao didn't hesitate, but walked into the attic. This is the Ling family's "Xuan Ji Pavilion," housing the collections left behind by over a dozen generations of the family.
The first floor houses gray-level Xuan Ji, the second floor yellow-level Xuan Ji, and only the elders know what's hidden on the third floor.
Ling Xiao, having returned to the inner courtyard, is now authorized to browse the Xuan Ji Pavilion's techniques on floors one and two.
Ling Xiao possesses a wealth of martial arts skills. He came here simply to compare the power of the techniques here with his own, and also to learn more閳ユ攣fter all, more skills are better than less!
Gray-level Xuan Ji is the lowest level of martial arts, and also the most extensive collection. The bookshelves on the first floor are overflowing with them. Ling Xiao casually browsed around, finding nothing of note, and then went up to the second floor.
Upon arrival, he saw an elderly man sitting in a throne, sipping tea. The old man looked a hundred years old, but in reality, he was already one hundred and forty-three. Wrinkles crisscrossed his face, exuding an air of age and decay. His thin, stooped body seemed vulnerable to the wind, though his old eyes occasionally gleamed with a subtle gleam of light.
Ling Xiao was slightly startled, then bowed respectfully, saying, "Greetings, Grand Elder."
This old man was none other than the Grand Elder of the Ling family.
Upon seeing Ling Xiao, the Grand Elder's glint flickered, and he spoke with a hint of excitement, "You, boy, have become a Mystic Master again? Strange... Strange... Could it be that I was wrong back then?"
It was he who had previously asserted that Ling Xiao could no longer cultivate profound energy unless he possessed a fifth-tier or higher heaven-defying elixir. Could it be that this boy had taken a fifth-tier elixir? This was clearly impossible. Finding even a third-tier elixir in Meteorite City was difficult, let alone a fourth-tier or fifth-tier one; that was simply out of their reach. "Tell me, young man! How did you manage to cultivate profound energy again?" the Grand Elder stood up and asked, slightly excited.
Ling Xiao naturally wouldn't reveal the secret of the Three-Part Return to Origin Qi. As the saying goes, a man innocent of crime is guilty of hiding a secret.
"I don't know. I suddenly seemed to be able to cultivate profound energy again while practicing," Ling Xiao said innocently, spreading his hands.
The Grand Elder instantly approached Ling Xiao and grabbed his arm with one hand.
Ling Xiao was caught without even reacting, and couldn't help but wonder if this old man must be a superb master. The Grand Elder pondered for a moment, then walked around Ling Xiao again, muttering, "Strange... Strange... All twelve meridians have recovered, and their power is incredibly pure. It doesn't seem like he's practicing some demonic art. It's simply incredible. Well... well... Since this is a great opportunity for you, and a blessing for our Ling family, I won't press you further."
The Grand Elder muttered to himself before reclining on his armchair, closing his eyes to rest.
Ling Xiao then walked towards the bookshelf displaying profound techniques.
The second floor held Yellow-grade techniques. Yellow-grade techniques were one level higher than Gray-grade techniques, and naturally several times more powerful. The number of Yellow-grade techniques here was significantly reduced compared to the first floor, with only about a hundred Yellow-grade techniques stored here.
Ling Xiao walked to the nearest bookshelf and casually picked up a profound technique. "Yellow-grade Fire-type Martial Arts, Fiery Flame Art" is a technique suitable for fire-attributed warriors above the Xuanshi level, who have already distinguished their own martial arts attributes. It is divided into three sections, each of which is extremely powerful.
Ling Xiao casually flipped through it, put it back, and then picked up another one nearby.
"Yellow-grade Water-type Martial Arts, Five Waves Overlapping Tide" also requires the Xuanshi level and is a technique only available to water-type warriors.
Ling Xiao glanced at several of them, all of which were Yellow-grade Martial Arts related to the five elements of gold, wood, water, fire, and earth. These techniques were of little value to him at the moment. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he noticed a rather worn scroll in a corner.
Curious, Ling Xiao walked over and picked it up.
"It's a fragment?" Ling Xiao flipped through it casually. It contained only a few pages, with much less explanation than the other techniques. It turned out to be just a fragment. He flipped back to the first page and saw the annotation: "Unknown level, unknown attributes, Vajra Five Transformations..."
Ling Xiao quickly read through the "Vajra Five Transformations" and muttered, "It can actually be practiced from the Xuanzhe level. It's a defensive technique, but unfortunately it only has the first two transformations. Even if I practice it, the defense I gain can only withstand a single attack from a peak Xuanshi level. It's quite effective, but I wonder what level of defense the last three transformations offer?"
Ling Xiao read the "Vajra Five Transformations" again, imprinting it indelibly in his mind before preparing to leave.
Before leaving, he paid a slight bow to the still-closed-eyes Grand Elder.
After he left, the Grand Elder opened a thread and muttered to himself, "I hope this kid can bring me more surprises!"