Lu Sheng stared blankly at him, speechless.
"Back then, it took me more than four hours to sense Qi. People in the Yin year, Yin month, and Yin hour are indeed extraordinary. "
He composed himself and hurriedly explained.
"This is the rudimentary Qi. You need to spend more than four hours cultivating and stabilizing it every day. Otherwise, if you leave it alone, it will dissipate naturally in a few days," he explained. "This is formed from the Five Grains Essence Qi. You don't need to use your mind to stabilize it. Your body will automatically convert and absorb it."
"Then, Master Lu, how long do I need to stabilize it?" Song Zhenguo opened his eyes, his face filled with joy. He did not expect to sense inner Qi so quickly.
"You have a good aptitude. This inner force is quite effective, so it takes a little more time. Three years and you'll be able to stabilize the rudimentary Qi. After that, you can choose to cultivate the first level of the mantra, "Lu Sheng estimated according to the time recorded in the manual.
"Three years!!!" Song Zhenguo was stunned, the smile on his face frozen.
He saw that Lu Sheng had such a profound cultivation at such a young age, and his martial arts skills were astonishing. He thought that as long as he had a good aptitude, he would be able to master martial arts in no time. He did not expect that just the rudimentary inner force mantra would require three years to stabilize …
"Your aptitude is still considered good. If it were anyone else, they'd need at least four to five years," Lu Sheng continued. "This is also the reason why inner force experts are far more difficult to cultivate than outer force experts. It takes too much time and energy. And the rewards aren't necessarily great. Many inner force experts have cultivated for many years, but after coming out of seclusion, they were easily beaten to death because they did not know martial arts. It's quite a pity. "
These days, he had consulted the old Sect Master about Ultimate Crimson Mantra, and had learned of many Jianghu anecdotes. He was no longer a complete novice like he was in the beginning. He spoke of these things clearly and logically.
"Then can I make up for it by cultivating outer force?" Song Zhenguo asked again.
"You've decided to join my Crimson Sun Sect?" Lu Sheng asked in return.
"I'm sure!" Song Zhenguo looked serious.
"You have to understand that once you enter the sect, you're not allowed to betray it. Otherwise, you'll be killed by your fellow sect members, and you'll have no control over your life," Lu Sheng said in a low voice.
"I'm sure!" Song Zhenguo nodded firmly. "Please teach me, Master Lu Sheng!" He cupped his fists and knelt before Lu Sheng, kowtowing.
Lu Sheng did not stop him. This was the rule. Friendship was friendship, and passing on skills was passing on skills. In this world, there was no free lunch, and there was no free lunch.
Moreover, he had saved Song Zhenguo's life before, so it was not a big deal for him to kowtow now.
One was kowtowing, while the other was sitting. After nine consecutive kowtows … Lu Sheng helped Song Zhenguo up.
"I won't tell you too much about the matters of my Crimson Sun Sect for now. You just need to practice your martial arts, and when the time comes, I'll naturally tell you."
"Alright!" Song Zhenguo's forehead was bleeding from the kowtowing.
It made sense. An ordinary scholar dared to face a ghost ship like the Red Decks Pleasure Boat without any fear. Just this courage alone was far beyond that of an ordinary person.
"Remember the incantation. This inner force is called the Green Pine One Thought Formula. First stabilize your entry level Qi, then I'll see what martial arts are suitable for you. "After becoming his disciple, Lu Sheng's attitude was obviously different.
He stood up and performed a few simple movements. They were the special movements of a few sets of outer force skills.
Song Zhenguo stood up and forced himself to learn a few. However, he could not do the third movement. His muscles and bones could not be twisted, and his joints were stiff and fixed. This was the consequence of not practicing martial arts from a young age.
After estimating Song Zhenguo's muscles and bones, Lu Sheng shook his head inwardly. This fellow's inner Qi was good, but his muscles and bones were already fixed. Many parts of his body were fixed.
He thought for a moment and said, "Your body is fixed and stiff, so you can only practice some simple outer force skills. As for outer force skills, I'll teach you a movement. "
He thought of a novel he once read. In it, there was a Hoodlum who painstakingly practiced a thrust sword. Because he only practiced one sword, he was extremely powerful.
Lu Sheng also wanted to try and see if this training method would work. In any case, Song Zhenguo's muscles and bones were fixed.
"There's a rumor that if you only practice one move, after a thousand, ten thousand, a hundred thousand, or a million times, the move will become extremely terrifying. I don't believe it. Although it will produce an extremely powerful force, the hidden injuries caused by it will be unbearable for ordinary people. Perhaps the body will be crippled before it reaches the ultimate power. But this is undoubtedly a shortcut. It will allow people to form combat power far faster than ordinary experts. "Lu Sheng looked at Song Zhenguo, whose eyes were shining as he listened.
"Can I do it too?" Song Zhenguo asked seriously.
Lu Sheng nodded.
"You can try. I'll tailor a movement that suits you. If you practice it every day, it might produce enough power. " Tailor made to avoid the stiff parts of the body, and the inner force was also a life-force skill. It should be able to make up for the hidden injuries caused by this training method.
Song Zhenguo's eyes lit up even more.
Time passed slowly.
By the time the two of them walked out of the forest, it was already noon. Song Zhenguo was in high spirits. He cupped his fists towards Lu Sheng and left in a hurry to rush back to cultivate his newly learned inner and outer force skills.
"It's fresh at the beginning. But when you see no progress in your daily cultivation, you'll know it's torture. Cultivating both inner and outer force, no matter how talented you are, without at least five years of foundation, you're not even a third-rate martial artist. "Lu Sheng shook his head slightly as he looked at the deed to a house in his hand.
This was a property that Song Zhenguo had donated to the sect after he had imparted his inner force skills. It was a gift for him to become his disciple.
A fragrant powder shop in the second most prosperous district of Mountain-Edge City, where every inch of land was worth its weight in gold, was worth close to ten thousand taels. To Song Zhenguo, this was a huge one-time investment.
Keeping the deed, Lu Sheng clapped his hands.
Soon, a group of sect members who were guarding the house dashed over.
"External Head!"
"Go and find out which man my sister, Lu Yingying, has been intimate with recently," Lu Sheng instructed calmly.
"Yes," the group of sect members acknowledged respectfully and left to relay the order.
After settling Song Zhenguo's matter, Lu Sheng arranged for men to guard the city gates, awaiting news of the Lu Family's relocation.
Because of the long journey, it was inconvenient for him to send men to fetch them. Moreover, even now, his family did not know that he had joined Crimson Whale Sect and had become a big shot. He intended to give his old man a surprise when he arrived.
The next day, he headed to Eastern Mountain Institution to attend the sacrificial ceremony.
Lu Sheng saw Chen Yunxi, whom he had not seen for a long time. This young lady of a noble family seemed to have lost some of her weight. When she saw him, Chen Yunxi's spirits lifted and a trace of joy flashed across her eyes.
The sacrificial ceremony was boring. It was just a circular stone platform set up high with four drums on it. At the same time, a ceremonial officer recited ancient sacrificial poems in a loud voice.
A large group of people below the stage were drowsy from listening to it.
Lu Sheng and Song Zhenguo stood in the middle of the crowd, dressed in long white robes with red trim and tall black pointed hats.
Chen Yunxi did not make it. Among her frequent friends, only Song Zhenguo and Lu Sheng made it. One was sixteenth, the other thirtieth. The rest of the crowd below the platform looked enviously up at the platform.
Lu Sheng looked down at the dense mass of people below, but he heard Song Zhenguo's soft voice beside his ear.
"Next year, we can go to the provincial capital for the County Examinations. Master Lu, do you want to go?" Song Zhenguo whispered.
"County Examinations …" Lu Sheng's expression did not change as he sighed. At his current level, as Crimson Whale Sect's External Affairs Emissary, he held considerable authority. In name, he was in charge of the security and stability of the entire Mountain-Edge City's underworld. What was the point of taking the examinations?
Even if he passed the County Examinations and became a Juren, so what? After that, even if he passed the Court Examinations, he would only become a Tribute Student or a Jinshi. But in this world, what use was that?
Lu Sheng sighed in his heart, looking steadily ahead.
"We'll talk about it when the time comes," he did not want to take the Imperial examinations anymore.
"Why don't Master Lu take the examinations and become a Martial Scholar?" Song Zhenguo suggested. "Given Master Lu's skills, a Martial Scholar is a piece of cake."
"Even if I become an official, so what?" Lu Sheng said in a low voice.
"Become an official, become an official …" Song Zhenguo was stunned. He wanted to defend himself, but the more he thought about it, the more he felt that something was amiss. Slowly, he lowered his head. "Yeah … so what if I become an official …" His expression became dejected.
"Worship the Saint!" the ceremonial official shouted, interrupting their conversation.
A large crowd of people bowed respectfully towards the bronze statue of the Saint on the platform.
Saint Zhao Mu, known as Master Zhao, was the pioneer of the Confucian Imperial Examination System. After his death, he was conferred the title of Saint by the Emperor. In reality, he was just an ordinary person with a large enough contribution.
Lu Sheng looked silently at the bronze statue of the old man, who was taller than a man. Expressionless, he followed the crowd and bowed.
'In the future, will I have to be like this too? Worship the Emperor, worship the Emperor, worship all those who hold a high position?' A thought flashed across his mind.
As he bowed and lowered his head, a hint of resolution finally flashed across Lu Sheng's eyes.
'In this world, there's no such thing as the weak being worshipped by the strong.' Listening to the ceremonial official's long speech, his heart slowly calmed down.
'This official, it's fine even if I don't.'
…
Between Nine Links City and Mountain-Edge City, on a stretch of dark green barren mountains, a caravan of carriages moved slowly along the grayish-yellow road.
The carriages were decorated with a black flag, embroidered with a white 'Lu' character.
More than ten oxen and horses, a few large carts, and a team of more than forty people. Just the escorts alone numbered more than ten. The rest were either direct or indirect relatives of the Lu Family.
The heavy oxen and horse carts were covered with a layer of gray rain tarp. Lu Quanan rode in front, Uncle Zhao and a few martial arts masters of the family by his side.
The sky gradually darkened. Uncle Zhao narrowed his eyes as he looked ahead, then looked left and right at his surroundings.
"We're in the middle of nowhere. We should've rested for a night in Jia Rong Town."
Lu Quanan shook his head, "It's no use. We're halfway there. Our speed is too slow. We won't make it in a day's time."
He turned back to look at an oxen cart behind him. The wheels of the cart still had traces of repair.
"Sigh, if we hadn't fallen into a pit and damaged the axle, we wouldn't be so slow. Four days and we're only halfway there. I wonder how Sheng 'er and Yingying are doing in Mountain-Edge. "
"Don't worry, Old Master. With Young Master Sheng's martial arts skills, he won't be at a disadvantage," Uncle Zhao smiled. At the mention of Lu Sheng, he too was filled with admiration. A genius expert who could attain Intent Proficiency at such a young age was rare even in Mountain-Edge City.
"I'm afraid he'll get into trouble …" Lu Quanan sighed.
Get into trouble?
Uncle Zhao had no words to refute.
"Since Family Head is worried, why did you let Young Master Sheng go to Mountain-Edge City alone?"
"Because I don't want to tie him down. Sheng 'er's world is different from ours. He's still young, and his future is still unknown, "Lu Quanan shook his head.
Uncle Zhao understood his intentions. Without further ado, he changed the topic.
"It's getting late. We'd better find a place to rest for the night. Otherwise, in this wilderness, the cold dew at night is no laughing matter."
"Mm. Uncle Zhao, look over there. Isn't that a village?" Lu Quanan suddenly pointed to the right.
Uncle Zhao followed his gaze. Amidst the dark green mountain range, by the side of the official road, stood a row of mud walled single-story houses. It seemed to be a village. But it looked desolate and run-down.
"Let's go take a look. Spend some money for a night."
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