Chapter 11: 第11章 炼髓

After parting ways with Zhao Shan, Chen Yuan returned to his small courtyard.

Two years ago, after Chen Yuan broke through to the Skin Tempering Realm, Zhao Shan had moved out of the courtyard.

Having failed to break through to the Marrow Tempering Realm for a long time, he had become somewhat disheartened. He took a wife and bought a house near Xingye Square.

Since then, Chen Yuan had lived in the small courtyard alone. Moving into the main room made the process of absorbing starlight into his body much easier.

He changed into his hemp clothes and went out again. Along the way, he picked up a prescription from a pharmacy and arrived in front of a dilapidated house on the east side of the county town, where he knocked on the door.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

After a while, the courtyard gate was gently pushed open. An elderly man with a hunched back and gray hair greeted him—it was the old scholar.

Chen Yuan stepped forward to support him, and the old scholar said

"Er Niu is here. Come inside, *cough, cough*. This old body of mine is getting worse by the day, *cough, cough*..."

Chen Yuan helped the old scholar into the main room, placed the medicine on the table, and then helped him sit down gently.

"This is what a student should do. Dr. Li said that after five more doses, your illness should be cured, sir. But you must pay attention to keeping warm, your diet, and getting plenty of rest."

The old scholar waved his hand and chuckled softly.

"Heh, birth, old age, sickness, and death are all governed by fate... Which volume are we reading today?"

"The *Lingxu Sutra*."

"Let me look... The *Lingxu Sutra*... Hmm, it should be here..."

The old scholar turned to search the bookshelf. Meanwhile, Chen Yuan took the herbs and soaked them in a wooden basin, preparing them for decoction.

A moment later, the old scholar pulled out a book, opened it, and began to recite

"The Five Elements generate and overcome each other, their principles clear. The Five Movements and Six Qi, the years, months, days, and hours, all stand upon this. They interact and serve one another. Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth—the interaction of form and qi gives birth to all things. This is the great discipline of creation and generation..."

The old scholar’s voice was aged. He would explain each sentence after reciting it. Chen Yuan would occasionally ask a question, and the old scholar would provide further clarification.

An hour later, halfway through the *Lingxu Sutra*, the old scholar’s forehead was beaded with sweat, and his voice grew even weaker.

Chen Yuan brought over the decocted herbs, placed them before the old scholar, and said

"You’ve worked hard, sir. Please drink your medicine first."

The old scholar smiled.

"What hardship is there? To have someone to care for me in my twilight years is already a great blessing from heaven; otherwise, I would have faced a desolate end."

Chen Yuan smiled but said nothing.

For the past three years, he had been following the old scholar, but not just to learn how to read and write.

After reaching an agreement with the old scholar, Chen Yuan had relied on his eidetic memory to master all common characters in just three months. He then spent another half-year learning ancient scripts.

After mastering the language, Chen Yuan did not stop there; he continued to study various classics under the old scholar.

Although the old scholar had failed the imperial examinations repeatedly, he was widely read and possessed vast knowledge, particularly in ancient classics and Taoist texts.

Martial arts techniques were often derived from Taoist classics and frequently utilized Taoist terminology.

To progress further in his martial arts, Chen Yuan, under the old scholar’s guidance, diligently studied Taoist classics while also delving into Confucian and Buddhist texts, his knowledge growing day by day.

He grew increasingly respectful toward the old scholar, treating him with the etiquette of a student. He gave the old scholar four hundred copper coins every month, which was enough for his food and clothing, sparing him from having to set up a stall on Wenchang Street to write letters for others.

After Chen Yuan broke through to the Skin Tempering Realm, his monthly allowance increased to two taels of silver. Aside from the four hundred coins, he sent one tael back home every month, ensuring his family lived without worry.

This year, the old scholar’s health had steadily declined. Last month, he caught a cold, and Chen Yuan hired a physician to treat him and prescribe medicine, which made the old scholar even more grateful.

If not for Chen Yuan, he would have long since frozen or starved to death.

The old scholar had no heirs and had stated that after his passing, he would bequeath the small courtyard and all his books to Chen Yuan.

Chen Yuan naturally did not covet this dilapidated courtyard, but he was very interested in the old scholar’s collection of ancient books, so he agreed and took meticulous care of him.

...

Chen Yuan watched the old scholar drink the medicine and told him he wouldn't be coming to study the Taoist scriptures for the next half-month before taking his leave.

He returned to the small courtyard and practiced the Tiger-Subduing Fist for another half-hour. However, when he finished, his expression was somber and his brows were slightly furrowed, as if he had encountered a bottleneck.

Lost in thought, he walked into the main room, changed into a yellow cloth tunic, picked up three food boxes, and went to the kitchen courtyard to get his meal.

The servants were unfazed; they filled the three boxes with food and respectfully handed them back to Chen Yuan.

Ever since Chen Yuan had joined the Hundred Weapons Hall, his appetite had been famously large.

As he successively broke through to the Skin Tempering and Bone Tempering realms, his appetite continued to grow. His reputation had spread, and the servants in the kitchen courtyard were already accustomed to it.

After dinner, Chen Yuan continued to practice his fist techniques.

But after only a quarter of an hour, he stopped, drew his long saber, and switched to practicing blade techniques.

This set of blade techniques was called the Five Tigers Door-Breaking Saber. Like the Tiger-Subduing Fist, it was the most widely circulated blade technique within the Tiger-Subduing Gang.

After Chen Yuan broke through to the Skin Tempering Realm, Zhao Shan had taught him this set.

The Five Tigers Door-Breaking Saber could not be called exquisite, but its power was impressive—more than enough for any martial artist below the Marrow Tempering Realm.

However, Chen Yuan was dissatisfied with its power, so he replaced the standard ten-catty ring-pommel saber used by most martial artists with a long saber weighing thirty catties.

Steward Li had scolded Chen Yuan for being overly ambitious, but after Chen Yuan performed the Five Tigers Door-Breaking Saber twice right in front of him, the steward had no further objections.

Since then, Chen Yuan’s reputation for having immense strength had grown even louder, though many mocked him in private.

No matter how strong he was, it was still just a thirty-catty long saber. If he couldn't defeat his enemy in two strikes, what was the point?

It wasn't until Chen Yuan charged into the fray during an escort mission into the Red Mang Mountains, fighting with unparalleled ferocity and hacking two Skin Tempering bandits to death with his long saber, that no one dared to mock him behind his back again.

Although Chen Yuan had been exhausted and unable to maintain his momentum after killing those two bandits, the ferocity of the long saber was extremely powerful in gang fights. By charging in and hacking wildly, he was difficult for any martial artist below the Marrow Tempering Realm to parry.

Moreover, in everyone’s eyes, Chen Yuan had a simple and honest personality, and a slow mind. Once, when a disagreement broke out, he had beaten someone until they were black and blue; no one wanted to provoke such a hothead.

However, no one took a martial artist like Chen Yuan, who only knew "three axes" (a limited set of moves), seriously.

Even if he broke through to the Bone Tempering Realm, he was still just a hothead—simple-minded, reckless, and posing no real threat.

But at this moment, the Chen Yuan practicing his blade alone in the courtyard was a far cry from the hothead image people held of him.

Holding the thirty-catty long saber, he moved with ease. As he danced with it, there was an unexpected lightness, like that of a sword. Furthermore, he practiced for an entire hour without the slightest sign of exhaustion.

Even Steward Li, a peak Marrow Tempering martial artist, could not practice the blade for an hour without stopping.

Only an Internal Energy martial artist, whose every movement was accompanied by true qi, could possess such enduring stamina.

Chen Yuan was, of course, not an Internal Energy martial artist, but he was not far off.

Outsiders believed he had just broken through to the Bone Tempering Realm, but in reality, he was already a peak Marrow Tempering martial artist.

Possessing the jade pendant and constantly experiencing starlight infusion, Chen Yuan’s progress in martial arts was extremely fast.

Three months of practice to break through to the Skin Tempering Realm. Another half-year to break through to the Bone Tempering Realm. Another year to break through to the Marrow Tempering Realm. Another half-year to reach the peak of the Marrow Tempering Realm, his dantian filled with true qi, making further progress difficult.

Meanwhile, Chen Yuan practiced diligently every day, bringing the Five Tigers Door-Breaking Saber to perfection. Every move and stance was etched into his heart, executed at will; he could split falling leaves and strike down flies with his blade.

It was only in front of others that he never revealed his true strength. He "broke through" to the Skin Tempering Realm just before the one-year mark, and only after his dantian was filled with true qi did he "break through" to the Bone Tempering Realm.

Three years to reach Bone Tempering was considered quite talented within the Hundred Weapons Hall, but not a martial arts prodigy, so it didn't draw too much attention.

According to what Chen Yuan had gathered, there was no shortage of martial artists in the county town who reached Bone Tempering in two years—those were the true martial arts geniuses.

His "breakthrough" to the Bone Tempering Realm was enough to gain Steward Li’s attention and obtain more benefits from him, without attracting the notice of others.

A month ago, after reporting his breakthrough to Steward Li, although he didn't become a guard captain, his monthly allowance rose to four taels of silver, the same level as a guard captain.

The other guard captains had no objections to this.

For the past three years, Chen Yuan had maintained his persona of being simple and honest, never revealing a flaw. When encountering bandits, he always charged to the front, fighting with great courage and earning many merits.

Of course, he wouldn't gamble with his own life; he only charged into battle when he had hidden his strength and felt confident, and he never greedily sought glory or lingered in a fight.

As the saying goes, the greatest hermit hides in the city. Chen Yuan’s conspicuous performance actually caused people to overlook the "hothead" that he was.

He also deliberately befriended the gray-clad apprentices in the hall, obtaining much useful information from them, which further aided his disguise.

But now, his careful disguise had become an obstacle to advancing further in his martial arts.

With his dantian filled with true qi and having reached the peak of the Marrow Tempering Realm, the Tiger-Subduing Force had reached its limit.

Over these seven months, Chen Yuan had tried various methods, but he could never break through to Internal Energy, and several times he had nearly suffered a qi deviation.

Fortunately, his physical body was strong and his meridians were tough, so he only suffered minor injuries that healed on their own.

It seemed now that he could only break through to Internal Energy by changing his cultivation technique.

But a Bone Tempering martial artist could not possibly gain access to Internal Energy techniques.

Only by entering the county town and joining the main branch could he possibly obtain higher-level techniques.

This required Chen Yuan to demonstrate greater strength; otherwise, a mere Bone Tempering martial artist would never be able to enter the main branch, and Steward Li would not let him leave.

But after thinking it over, Chen Yuan abandoned this idea.

Three years to reach Marrow Tempering was a rare talent across the entire Jade Province’s martial arts world, and it would inevitably attract the scrutiny of various factions.

As long as there was even the slightest possibility of exposing the existence of the jade pendant, he would not take the risk.

(End of chapter)