Chapter 154: The Cultivation Results of Everyone

Lu Yan revealing his true appearance and real name was a decision made after careful consideration.

First of all, he trusted Zhao Sirong and believed she would not leak his secrets.

Additionally, the name Lu Yan had only been used in Changfeng City, and the only people he had offended there were members of the Liu family.

However, he surmised that the Liu family had long known he was hiding in Baicao City. After all, despite his disguise, it was not difficult to trace him through Wang Lin, Li Quan, and the others.

Yet, because he held leverage over the Liu family's ancestor, the clan did not dare to act rashly.

Therefore, even if his identity as Lu Yan were exposed, the impact would be minimal.

Moreover, Zhao Sirong had helped him many times; continuous deception was indeed inappropriate.

Zhao Sirong’s eyes lit up slightly.

"You are even younger than I imagined. It seems I should call you younger brother," Zhao Sirong said with a smile.

"Are you necessarily older than me?" Lu Yan asked.

"I am twenty-eight this year. Am I older than you?" Zhao Sirong laughed.

"Alright then." Lu Yan nodded. Indeed, she was a bit older than him.

However, Martial Marquises possessed great vitality and aged slowly; Zhao Sirong looked to be only around twenty.

Time flew, and night fell.

Lu Yan stood up to take his leave.

"Come here, give me a hug." Zhao Sirong opened her arms.

"Ah?" Lu Yan was stunned.

"You're a big man, why are you so coy? A woman like me doesn't mind, what are you hesitating for?"

Zhao Sirong walked over, gave Lu Yan a hug, and then stepped back. "Brother Lu, entering Mount Kunwu is not without danger. Humans hunt fierce beasts, but fierce beasts can also hunt humans. You must also watch out for others killing and robbing you of your treasures. Take care."

Lu Yan nodded, cupped his fists in a salute, and turned to leave.

Returning to the inn and packing his belongings, Lu Yan immediately left the city and headed south.

Carrying a large chest of tier-two martial dried rations, Lu Yan naturally did not travel on foot; instead, he purchased a fast horse and rode it along the road.

As he rode, he pulled out a piece of martial ration and began to chew.

He was not practicing martial arts; rather, he channeled all the energy from the martial rations directly into the Heart Tempering Scripture clone.

The Heart Tempering Scripture was distinct from other martial arts. It consisted of a total of eight tiers, and every breakthrough required a catalyst. Therefore, Lu Yan was eager to see how the Heart Tempering Scripture broke through, whether the Daoist Tome could directly assist in the breakthrough, and if there were any special nuances.

As the dried martial rations entered his stomach, the progress of the Heart Tempering Scripture clone slowly increased.

Lu Yan discovered that the energy required to advance the Heart Tempering Scripture was even greater than that of top-tier martial arts, nearly double.

One pound of fresh martial food increased progress by one point.

One pound of dried martial food could increase progress by two percentage points.

Consuming ten pounds of dried martial rations a day allowed the Heart Tempering Scripture clone to advance by 20% daily.

Five days later, the Heart Tempering Scripture clone reached 100% of the first tier.

However, once it reached 100% of the first tier, the progress of the Heart Tempering Scripture stopped completely, motionless.

"What is going on?" Lu Yan's heart sank.

With other martial arts, as long as one reached 100%, a natural breakthrough to the next tier would occur.

Why did the Heart Tempering Scripture remain completely static at 100%? Did it still require a catalyst to break through?

If so, what was the point of cultivating it?

Unwilling to accept this, Lu Yan continued to consume the dried martial rations. The energy from the rations, regulated by the Daoist Tome, continuously surged into the Heart Tempering Scripture clone.

Lu Yan quickly noticed an abnormality.

The 100% characters above the Heart Tempering Scripture clone, which initially had a faint color, gradually deepened in hue as the energy from the martial rations poured in.

"Could it be that the breakthrough between tiers of the Heart Tempering Scripture requires accumulating a massive amount of energy to serve as a substitute for the catalyst?"

A thought flashed through Lu Yan's mind.

It was highly likely.

With this realization, the heavy stone weighing on Lu Yan's heart fell away.

As long as a breakthrough was possible, it didn't matter if it simply required spending a few more martial rations.

He continued his journey while consuming the dried martial rations.

The speed of riding a horse was naturally far inferior to his own traveling speed on foot.

Yet, eating martial rations on the go could hardly be considered wasting time.

It took a month before Lu Yan finally returned to Baicao City.

This trip to Lingwang City had consumed a little over ten months in total.

Fortunately, his objective had been achieved, alongside several extra harvests. It could be considered an overwhelming success.

The first thing he did upon returning to Baicao City was to visit Lu Qingshan and Wang Cui.

When Lu Qingshan learned that his meridians had hope of recovery, he was completely stunned, taking a long time to regain his wits.

"Yan'er, your father originally thought he was destined to be cut off from the martial path for the rest of his life. I never expected that one day I might step back onto the martial path. Father thanks you," Lu Qingshan said solemnly.

"Father, why are you being so polite with me? Right, this martial food cannot be consumed all at once; it must be divided over seven days, eating a portion each day. Your meridians will slowly improve, and in less than two months, they should be fully healed," Lu Yan said.

Lu Qingshan nodded repeatedly with excitement.

...

In the main hall of the Three Ultimates Martial Hall.

Lu Yan sat in the seat of honor.

Below him stood two rows of people.

There were the old guards: Wang Lin, Li Quan, Cao Hu, and Zhang Jun.

In addition, there were seven key disciples showing outstanding martial talent, headed by Wen Yuan. All of them had cultivated the Indestructible Vajra Skill.

"Circulate your Qi and Blood so I can examine your cultivation," Lu Yan said.

Hearing this, Wang Lin, Wen Yuan, and the others simultaneously stirred their inner breath.

Lu Yan's eyes lit up.

Though they had been apart for over ten months, everyone's cultivation had improved.

Lu Yan's gaze first fell upon Wen Yuan.

Five breakthroughs.

Wen Yuan's cultivation had actually reached the fifth restriction break.

One must know that when Lu Yan had last left for Lingwang City, Wen Yuan had only just achieved four breakthroughs.

From the time he taught Wen Yuan the Indestructible Vajra Skill, it had been a little over four and a half years, less than five.

Although Wen Yuan had the personal guidance of Lu Yan—a master who had achieved the integration of man and martial arts—and tier-one martial food was supplied in abundance, progressing at such a pace was still a rare sight.

You must remember that Wen Yuan started practicing martial arts at age fourteen, lagging five or six years behind the elite heirs of noble clans.

Yet his current achievements were not inferior to theirs in the slightest.

A martial arts prodigy was truly a martial arts prodigy.

Without the Daoist Tome, he wouldn't even be qualified to instruct such a person.

Aside from Wen Yuan, Wang Lin also gave Lu Yan a pleasant surprise.

Because Wang Lin had also reached the fifth restriction break, and his Qi and Blood were even more vigorous than Wen Yuan's.

He was not far from the state of full saturation of Qi and Blood at the fifth break.

Wang Lin's talent was not weak, but compared to Wen Yuan, he fell far behind, belonging to the type of late bloomer who accumulated strength slowly over time.

Li Quan, Cao Hu, and Zhang Jun had all improved, though not dramatically.

However, all six of the newer disciples showed commendable progress.

The weakest among them had reached the second restriction break, while the highest achieved the third restriction break, nearly reaching saturation of Qi and Blood. Although far inferior to Wen Yuan, it was by no means poor.

"If you have any doubts regarding your cultivation, you may bring them up," Lu Yan said.

Immediately, the group raised the questions they had encountered during this period, one by one.

Having mastered four top-tier martial arts to the realm of man-and-martial-arts integration, Lu Yan possessed a horizon so broad that even most grandmasters fell short of it.

He could often pierce through to the fundamental essence with a single glance, offering just a few casual pointers that left people suddenly enlightened and fully comprehending.

Half a day later, Wang Lin, Wen Yuan, and the others departed, each wearing a look of utmost satisfaction and profound harvest.

Lu Yan kept Li Quan behind.

"Li Quan, I instructed you to observe the disciples and handymen entering the hall. During this period, have you found any suitable candidates?" Lu Yan asked.

To cultivate his own core faction, relying solely on Wen Yuan and the other seven was far from enough.

"Hall Master, your subordinate has always placed this matter as the top priority. During this time, we have indeed discovered six good saplings whose character, family background, and talent are all exceptional," Li Quan reported.

"Bring them to see me," Lu Yan instructed.

Soon, six youths stood side by side before Lu Yan.

All six had already spent some time coming into contact with second-tier martial arts; nourished by Qi and Blood, their physiques had become robust.

Lu Yan questioned them one by one, finally nodding in satisfaction.

"In three days, I will teach you a top-tier martial art," Lu Yan said.

The bodies of the six youths trembled, intense flames of anticipation flashing in their eyes. They fell to their knees and kowtowed, saying, "We disciples thank the Hall Master. The Hall Master's immense grace will never be forgotten; in the future, we will serve as beasts of burden to repay this profound kindness."

Lu Yan smiled and nodded. "Rise. Do not leak the matter of cultivating a top-tier martial art."

The six youths nodded repeatedly.

After the six youths left, Lu Yan instructed Li Quan further: "Send someone to Lingwang City to bring a family over... the girl's nickname is Doufu."

Without delay, Lu Yan described the appearance of Doufu's family in detail, along with their specific home address.

"First ask Doufu's parents if they are willing to leave Lingwang City. If they are unwilling, do not force the matter," Lu Yan said.

Doufu had once expressed her desire to learn the culinary martial arts path from Lu Yan, a promise Lu Yan had made to her.

Naturally, Lu Yan would not break a promise made to a young girl.

"Understood, your subordinate will attend to it right away," Li Quan bowed.

"Go ahead," Lu Yan waved his hand.

"There is a little over a year left before entering Mount Kunwu. From now on, I must focus entirely on elevating my cultivation and charging toward the fourth tier of the Martial Marquis realm," Lu Yan pondered.

For now, he intended to temporarily set aside martial arts and even the Heart Tempering Scripture.

He had to reach the fourth tier of the Martial Marquis realm by the time he entered Mount Kunwu.

His trip to Lingwang City had made Lu Yan realize that there were heavens beyond the heavens and people beyond people.

The top-tier Martial Marquises on the Marquis Ranking each possessed formidable combat prowess and held their own trump cards.

Not a single one of them was easy to deal with.

Gao Wanping had only ranked sixteenth, yet his overall combat strength already surpassed Lu Yan's, forcing Lu Yan to rely solely on the Cloud-Crossing Step to spar with him.

In a head-on clash, he would have been defeated.

And those in the top fifteen were bound to be even stronger.

Most of these individuals would undoubtedly enter Mount Kunwu.

The cultivation of the third tier of the Martial Marquis realm was simply too low.

To contend with those top-tier Martial Marquises, he needed to break through to at least the fourth tier of the Martial Marquis realm.

Three days later, Lu Yan sketched out the artistic conception diagram of the Nine Heavens Saber and imparted it to the six disciples.

Afterward, he devoted himself entirely to enhancing his cultivation.

He had exchanged for over seven hundred catties of dried martial rations from the Zhao family, half of which he consumed on the road, and the remaining half was depleted over the following month.

Lu Yan continued traveling to the hidden blood veins to hunt tier-two blood-armored lizards, hauling them back to the Three Ultimates Martial Hall to cook and consume himself.

With a sufficient daily intake of tier-two martial food, his ninth bone strength grew rapidly and robustly.

Since he was only nourishing a single bone strength and did not need to break through a realm boundary, the process was swift. In just two months, the ninth bone strength caught up and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the other eight.

Then, all nine bone strengths advanced in tandem, surging toward the peak of the third tier of the Martial Marquis realm.

Last time, when the Cloud-Crossing Step reached the integration of man and martial arts, he forged a postnatal martial body and received a gift from heaven and earth, raising the strength of his bone strengths by several notches. Thus, the peak of the third tier of the Martial Marquis realm was not far away.

In the blink of an eye, several months passed.

There were only six months remaining before entering Mount Kunwu.

At this time, the major noble clans of the six commanderies of eastern Ling began selecting experts to travel to Lingwang City in preparation for contending for the quotas to enter Mount Kunwu.

Entry into Mount Kunwu occurred once every twenty years, and there were only seventy-two quotas available.

These quotas were tightly controlled by grandmaster-level noble clans; martial-marquis-level clans could simply forget about them.

Even among grandmaster-level noble clans, competition for the quotas was fierce.

Across the six commanderies of eastern Ling, there were a total of thirteen grandmaster-level noble clans.

Among them, Nanyi Commandery had three, Da'an Commandery two, Li'an Commandery one, Qingfeng Commandery three, Zijin Commandery two, and Dongshan Commandery two.

As for the Liu family, although they had just one grandmaster, their overall strength was far too weak and they possessed too few Martial Marquises, meaning they could not be considered a true grandmaster-level noble clan and were excluded from this competition.

Thirteen grandmaster-level noble clans contending for seventy-two quotas made for exceptionally intense rivalry.

Even grandmasters themselves would step down into the arena to contend.

As for Martial Marquises, they were all top-tier experts.

Ordinary Martial Marquises of the fifth tier found it difficult even to participate in the contest.

Therefore, even if the Li family dispatched people to fight, it wouldn't be Lu Yan's turn.