Chapter 49: Refining Strength into the Marrow (Please add to favorites and follow for updates)

Besides the acupoints and the meridian diagrams.

On the upper left corner of the silver paper, several lines of small text were also written. The first line specified the name of this manual—the *Marrow Refining Sutra*.

"Back then, when your grandmaster passed away, he was also harboring a death wish. After giving this memorial tablet to me, he said that once I broke through to the Qi-Sensing Realm, I should open it..."

"I never expected that my aptitude would be so dull that even in my old age, I have yet to break through the realm."

Scholar Dan held the broken memorial tablet of his late master, his face etched with sighs of lamentation.

In this life, had he not taken the martial arts genius Wei Tu as his disciple, he likely would never have opened this tablet to retrieve the manual stored within.

"Once you have secured this *Marrow Refining Sutra*, remember not to show it to others lightly," Scholar Dan instructed, taking the silver paper from the tablet and handing it to Wei Tu.

"Your disciple understands," Wei Tu nodded heavily.

The manual for the *Tiger and Crane Double Form Fist* was considered a rare martial arts masterpiece even within Qingshan County and the entirety of Qingfeng Prefecture.

Now, the *Marrow Refining Sutra* that Scholar Dan was handing him to refine his internal Qi cultivation could lead directly to the realm of the Xiantian Martial Master... without a second thought, it was bound to be extraordinarily precious.

If it were leaked...

Not only would he be targeted by others, but the Dan residence would also suffer as a consequence.

"But Master, don't you intend to look at the contents of this manual?" Wei Tu asked, feeling slightly surprised.

With the manual right before him, it was difficult to understand why Scholar Dan had no intention of transcribing or even reading it.

"Without having cultivated internal Qi, reading this *Marrow Refining Sutra* will only bring unnecessary frustration."

Scholar Dan shook his head.

External training refines the marrow into the bones, nurturing a breath of innate Qi to enter the Xiantian Martial Master realm.

However, the prerequisite for all of this was using external methods to enter the Qi-Sensing Realm.

Without internal strength, the bone marrow inside a martial artist's body is neither visible nor tangible; how could one train it?

Looking at it would be a waste of time.

Hearing this, Wei Tu stopped trying to persuade him. He pondered for a moment, steeled his resolve, and cupped his hands. "In the future, if anyone in the Dan family practices martial arts and enters the Qi-Sensing Realm, I will, just as you have done today, pass this *Marrow Refining Sutra* to the Dan family... I will not keep it for myself!"

A teacher's grace is as heavy as a mountain.

Masters like Scholar Dan, who shared their knowledge without selfishness, were rare in this world.

In every profession, there was no shortage of masters who treated their disciples like servants and only passed on their ultimate techniques when they were on their deathbeds...

Of course, those masters had their own reasons.

But it was precisely because of this that Scholar Dan's character was so precious.

Wei Tu knew that if Scholar Dan truly wanted to "make things difficult" for him in this regard, there were plenty of ways.

For instance, he could force him to swear an oath or sign a letter to look after the Dan descendants for a certain number of years.

These were all feasible.

Once violated, he would find it impossible to maintain his standing in the local area and official circles.

"There is no need to force such things," Scholar Dan smiled and shook his head upon hearing this. "When your grandmaster passed this manual to me, he never demanded anything of me. How could I be so demanding of you... having this intention is enough."

At this moment, while he spoke these words, his heart felt differently.

If it weren't for the fact that over the past two years, Wei Tu had treated him like a father, visiting and showing filial piety from time to time, and maintained a good relationship with his son, Dan Yandong, how could he have so easily passed the *Marrow Refining Sutra* to Wei Tu today...

Previously, he had asked Wei Tu to take a stand regarding Dan Yiwu's matter because he had not spent much time with him and did not fully understand Wei Tu's character.

Time reveals a person's true heart.

Two years was enough time to see a person clearly.

...

After tucking the *Marrow Refining Sutra* close to his person, Wei Tu assisted Scholar Dan back into the living room, where the two chatted about trivial matters.

"A few days ago, Yandong sent a letter saying that his new concubine is about to give birth."

"That girl has a pointed belly and loves sour foods; she's likely carrying a boy," Scholar Dan said with a chuckle.

With his son Dan Yandong producing an heir, one of his worries had been resolved.

—No matter how close a grandson is, he is never as close as a true legitimate heir.

"Congratulations to Master on the addition to your family. I will have Xinghua prepare a gift and head to the prefectural city to congratulate Brother Yandong in a few days," Wei Tu replied.

"I heard from a friend at the county magistrate's office that you forged fine armor a few days ago. Has something major happened?"

After some small talk, Scholar Dan steered the conversation toward this topic.

He glanced at Wei Tu's expression and had a general idea of what was happening. After a moment of silence, he said, "Matters concerning the military are not to be leaked. You don't need to tell me. When you leave later, take those few hard bows from the residence with you."

"Also, take my Golden-Backed Mountain-Cleaving Saber as well."

"Fine armor is useless without a corresponding, handy weapon."

A good weapon was worth a fortune.

Each piece was incredibly expensive.

His Golden-Backed Mountain-Cleaving Saber alone would have cost no less than a hundred taels of silver to forge.

Scholar Dan could guess that Wei Tu had likely spent his entire fortune just to forge that piece of fine armor.

"Thank you, Master."

Wei Tu sighed inwardly and expressed his gratitude to Scholar Dan once more.

—He felt that he could never fully repay the debt of gratitude he owed his master in this lifetime.

...

In the afternoon.

When leaving the Dan residence, compared to his light travel on the way there, Wei Tu now had a Golden-Backed Saber at his waist and three bows of varying lengths on his back.

These three bows were a foot bow, a horse bow, and a five-dan hard bow used for long-distance sniping.

Wei Tu could manage to get the first two with some effort, but the latter was harder to come by.

The higher the draw weight, the more precious and rare the hard bow.

According to Wei Tu's estimation, this five-dan hard bow could be exchanged for two warhorses similar to the Qingcong horses.

Returning to his home in the county town.

Wei Tu took two feet of patterned cloth, smeared it with lard, and then carefully wrapped the three bows and the Golden-Backed Saber before placing them in his wardrobe for safekeeping.

Only after completing all this did Wei Tu finally have the leisure to look at the page of the manual left by his grandmaster, the Golden Blade Hero Shi Ming.

"This *Marrow Refining Sutra* actually feels like one of those legendary martial arts manuals..."

"Breathing and exhaling, refining essence into Qi, refining strength into the marrow..."

After reading the *Marrow Refining Sutra*, Wei Tu remarked to himself in awe.

The manual in his hands was divided into three parts: the "Breathing Chapter," the "Essence Refining Chapter," and the "Marrow Entry Chapter."

The Breathing and Essence Refining chapters were the foundation of the *Marrow Refining Sutra*, similar to internal cultivation techniques, used to accumulate internal strength within the body.

The final Marrow Entry chapter was the essence of the *Marrow Refining Sutra*. By using internal Qi to drive strength into the marrow, one could then stimulate a breath of "innate Qi," thereby achieving the Xiantian realm.

"I wonder how long it will take me to reach the Xiantian realm if I cultivate this technique."

Wei Tu mused as he began to practice the breathing techniques of the *Marrow Refining Sutra*.

Time flowed slowly...

He practiced from the afternoon until the middle of the night.

The internal Qi in Wei Tu's body finally began to follow the meridian pathways described in the "Breathing Chapter."

Over and over again.

Under Wei Tu's "inner vision," the first wisp of internal Qi gradually grew into a second, then a third, and more and more followed.

At that moment, Wei Tu once again saw a line of text slowly emerge from his Golden-Purple Fate.

[Marrow Refining Sutra (1/100): Fifteen practices a day, mastery in thirty years.]

(End of Chapter)