Chapter 20: Success

After leaving the small courtyard, the two men swaggered along, showing no intention of concealing their presence.

Following at a distance behind them, Chen Yuan watched with his own eyes as they made their way all the way to the Sun Estate.

The Sun Estate gatekeeper skillfully opened the side door and welcomed them in. Chen Yuan's eyes flashed, and he turned to slip away quietly.

As expected, Manager Sun had not completely lowered his guard against him.

Chen Yuan never expected that a single conversation with Zhao Shan would be enough to earn Manager Sun's trust.

The bait had been cast today, and the fish had taken the hook.

What needed to be done now was to cast more bait and feed the fish until the waters returned to calm.

...

After entering the Sun Estate following the two men tailing Chen Yuan, they were led by a servant to a study, where they met Manager Sun, who was waiting there.

The two men bowed in greeting. Manager Sun waved them off and asked expressionlessly

"Speak. What did Chen Erniu do today? Was there anything unusual?"

One of them replied respectfully

"Reporting to the Manager, Chen Erniu did not leave the house this morning. At noon, he took a food box to fetch a meal. This afternoon, many family members of the guards came to inquire about the caravan..."

He detailed everything Chen Yuan had done today, and the other man added supplementary details, neither of them offering any judgment.

After listening carefully, Manager Sun nodded slightly

"After escaping a great disaster, it is only human nature to feel extreme fear and seek pleasure in debauchery and intoxication. There is nothing unusual about it. Watch him for one more day tomorrow. If it remains the same as today, there is no need to follow him further."

"Yes!"

The two responded respectfully and exited the study.

Manager Sun closed his eyes slightly and sat in silence for a moment. The servant then led the other two into the study.

He opened his eyes and, after the two had bowed, he asked

"What did Zhao Shan do today? Was there anything unusual?"

"Reporting to the Manager, Zhao Shan stayed home all day today. Many family members of the guards came to inquire about the caravan..."

...

The next day, Chen Yuan took the remaining bit of silver and went out again to drink, listen to music, and indulge in pleasure.

On the third day, Chen Yuan continued as before, squandering the last five hundred copper coins in his possession.

But this time, he did not feel the gaze of anyone tailing him.

Chen Yuan remained composed, maintaining his outward appearance of a man lost in drunken revelry.

After returning to the small courtyard, he quietly climbed over the wall, carefully inspected the surroundings, and finding nothing, finally felt at ease.

Manager Sun had likely ceased his suspicions and stopped sending people to tail him; he could now act with peace of mind.

Coincidentally, he had also exhausted his savings. Had Manager Sun sent people to follow him for a few more days, he would have had no way to test the waters.

Chen Yuan quietly climbed back into the courtyard and, after using Starlight Infusion, fell into a deep sleep.

...

The next morning, after eating breakfast, Chen Yuan put on a set of inconspicuous coarse cloth clothes, left Xingye坊 (Xingye Ward), and arrived at a money exchange.

This exchange was named Huitong Money Exchange, the largest in the State of Qi. It had been established for a hundred years, with branches spread across various regions, possessing immense wealth and an excellent reputation.

Chen Yuan found the manager of Huitong Money Exchange, showed him a copper key, and spoke a few secret words.

The manager showed a look of surprise but still led him to a side room and told him to wait.

After waiting for about fifteen minutes, the manager brought a small wooden box with a lock and placed it before Chen Yuan before turning to leave.

Chen Yuan took out the copper key, opened the box, and couldn't help but let a smile slip across his face as he looked at the contents.

This wooden box was what Steward Li had given to Chen Yuan before his death; it was his final legacy, something even Madam Zhang and Li Ying'er did not know about.

There was quite a lot inside the box: a yellowed ancient manual, which was the Li family's hereditary technique, the *Six Yang Art*.

A jade bottle containing ten Primordial Nourishing Pills used by Marrow-Refining martial artists, worth one hundred taels of silver.

A wooden box containing a hundred-year-old mountain ginseng with long, dense roots.

Finally, there was a deed to a three-entry courtyard in the prefectural city, and a five-hundred-tael silver note.

Chen Yuan carefully counted and inspected everything. Once he was certain all items were intact, he put them back, took the wooden box, and left the money exchange.

He did not return directly to Xingye Ward, but instead went to the old scholar's small courtyard in the east of the city and knocked on the door.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

A moment later, the courtyard gate opened. The old scholar poked his head out, and upon seeing Chen Yuan, a look of joy appeared on his face. He said

"Erniu, you're back?"

Chen Yuan smiled and said

"Teacher, it has been a long time. Please forgive your student for not being able to perform a formal salutation."

He lifted the small wooden box in his hands. The old scholar stepped aside, waved his hand, and said

"No need for formalities, come in quickly."

Chen Yuan entered the courtyard and went into the house with the old scholar, placing the small wooden box gently on the table.

The old scholar ignored the box and did not ask about Chen Yuan's experiences during this period; he merely said with a smile

"Have you come to study the scriptures today?"

Chen Yuan nodded and said

"That is my intention."

"Good. *Cough, cough*. Where did we leave off last time?"

Chen Yuan frowned and observed him closely, noticing that the old scholar's complexion was even paler than before and his frame was more hunched, showing his advanced age. He advised

"Teacher, if you are unwell, please rest for another day. There is no rush."

The old scholar shook his head stubbornly

"Since I have accepted your tuition, how can I not fulfill my duty to teach? Where did we leave off last time?"

Looking into the old scholar's cloudy yet determined eyes, Chen Yuan stopped persuading him and said

"We were halfway through the *Lingxu Scripture*."

"Good, let me find it..."

The old scholar turned around and struggled to search the bookshelves for a long time before finding the *Lingxu Scripture*. He spread it on the table and began to read slowly

"The Great Ultimate (Taiji) gives rise to the two polarities (Yin and Yang). The Taiji is the nature, and the two polarities are the life. Though the names are two, in reality, nature is the master, flowing between Yin and Yang. The meaning of this sentence is..."

Sentence after sentence of profound Taoist wisdom flowed from the old scholar's mouth. Chen Yuan listened with focused concentration, gradually forgetting everything in the outside world and immersing himself in the teachings.

Taoist classics contain profound meanings that explain all phenomena and the three thousand Great Daos, which are also closely related to the Martial Dao. As Chen Yuan listened, he gained significant insights.

An hour later, the old scholar finally stopped, having finished the entire volume of the *Lingxu Scripture*.

"*Cough, cough*. Now that this volume of the *Lingxu Scripture* is finished, I have three more Taoist scriptures left. Take them all and study them on your own."

Chen Yuan asked in surprise

"Teacher, why do you say that?"

"*Cough, cough*. In these three years, I have taught you a total of one hundred and thirteen volumes of Taoist scriptures. You are naturally gifted with a photographic memory and have long since mastered them; you no longer need my guidance."

Chen Yuan said

"Teacher, you praise me too much. I feel my knowledge is still shallow and I still require your guidance."

The old scholar smiled bitterly

"I have lectured for an hour today and already feel dizzy and lacking in energy. In the future, I will have even less strength. To continue would only be to mislead a student."

Chen Yuan sighed and said

"Very well. Since your mind is made up, I can only accept it. But even if you no longer teach me, I will still come to visit you once every day to brew and prepare your medicine. I hope you take good care of your health and recover soon."

The old scholar's eyes showed emotion, and he smiled

"Then I shall trouble you."

Afterward, Chen Yuan asked the old scholar for a bundle, went to the side room, took the items out of the wooden box, placed them together with the three Taoist scriptures into the bundle, and took his leave.

During this process, the old scholar did not ask a single question; he simply followed Chen Yuan's instructions to hide the small wooden box, not letting it be seen by others.

...

Carrying the bundle on his back, Chen Yuan traveled cautiously, taking many detours to avoid the people from the Hundred Weapons Hall before returning to his small courtyard.

It was nearly noon. To avoid suspicion, Chen Yuan first went to the kitchen to fetch a meal.

After eating lunch, he slid the door bolt into place, entered the main room, and only after closing the door securely did he open the bundle.

Chen Yuan first put away the five-hundred-tael silver note; with the current tensions high, he would have to wait some time before he could exchange it for hard cash.

The deed to the house in the prefectural city was of no immediate use, so he put it away with the silver note.

The hundred-year-old mountain ginseng, however, could be put to use immediately.

It was a spiritual medicine for strengthening the foundation and nourishing the essence, capable of saving lives, but for a martial artist, its auxiliary effect in aiding a breakthrough to the Inner Strength realm was even more important.

Finally, there was a bottle of Primordial Nourishing Pills. Chen Yuan first took two to replenish the energy deficit caused by the Starlight Infusion the previous night, then kept the remaining eight close to his person.

Although the Primordial Nourishing Pills were intended for Marrow-Refining martial artists, Chen Yuan had lingered in the Marrow-Refining stage for a long time, and the frequent use of Starlight Infusion had made his physical body exceptionally strong; a single pill was not enough to replenish his energy.

Finally, Chen Yuan's expression turned solemn as he opened the *Six Yang Art*.

All the other items combined were not as valuable as this second-rate technique.

As long as he switched to this technique, Chen Yuan could break through to the Inner Strength realm, becoming capable of fighting a hundred men single-handedly—making him a top-tier expert in all of Leping County.

The *Six Yang Art* was only a thin volume. Chen Yuan quickly flipped through it from beginning to end, but his expression grew increasingly surprised, and when he finally closed it, he showed a look of wild ecstasy.

This *Six Yang Art* was not a second-rate technique, but a first-rate technique that could lead directly to the Transformation (Huajin) realm!

Steward Li had truly hidden his light. The outside world believed the *Six Yang Art* was merely a second-rate technique; while valued, it was not uncommon in the martial world.

Furthermore, as a steward of the Hundred Weapons Hall and a martial artist at the peak of the Marrow-Refining stage himself, not many people coveted it.

But if people knew that the *Six Yang Art* was a first-rate technique, the Li Estate would have been wiped out that very night.

Even Luo Zhenwu, the leader of the Tiger-Taming Gang, was only a Transformation-stage martial artist.

Aside from a few famous great sects, the signature techniques of most martial arts gangs—which were first-rate techniques—were mostly incomplete.

However, in addition to the method of circulating True Qi, the *Six Yang Art* also included a movement technique called the *Shadow-掠 (Shadow-掠) Step* and a sword technique called the *Crimson Sun Sword Style*.

These two ultimate techniques could be practiced independently, but only under the stimulation of the *Six Yang Art's* True Qi could their full potential be unleashed.

When the *Shadow-掠 Step* was practiced to its peak, one's movement would be ethereal, covering ten feet in an instant like a fleeting shadow.

The *Crimson Sun Sword Style* was extremely grand and fierce, aggressive as fire and swift as lightning, possessing terrifying power.

Treating it as a priceless treasure, Chen Yuan immediately went into the courtyard. The operational method of the *Six Yang Art* surfaced in his mind, and he slowly began to practice the *Six Yang Palms*, converting his internal Tiger-Taming Qi bit by bit into the masculine, solar True Qi of the *Six Yang Art*.

(End of Chapter)