This humble Taoist priest, Qianhe, begins his quest for immortality by slaying demons and monsters.

Chapter 4: A Year Has Passed, Body Tempering Technique Achieved (Minor Success)
Days passed by, and pills were consumed one by one.

It has to be said that Zhong Bai now realizes that his grand ambitions before becoming an apprentice were nothing but nonsense.

After a whole year, Zhong Bai was still just a hair's breadth away from achieving the Lesser Chengdu level of the Shangqing Body Tempering Technique.

How would you evaluate this talent?
Yes, it took Lin Fengjiao of the Talisman Hall ten months to reach the Lesser Completion stage.

Zhong Bai had to admit that his talent had not yet reached the level of one in ten thousand.

Of course, he is by no means weak, but with this kind of cultivation speed, it will take at least ten years before he can go down the mountain to avenge his parents.

At first, Zhong Bai was a little upset about this, but over time, he calmed down.

After a year of exploration, Zhong Bai had also found out the relationships between the various halls on Maoshan Mountain.

Maoshan has a total of five halls and three pavilions.

The Law Enforcement Hall, where the Law Enforcement Elder is his master, True Man Qian Yuan, who has reached the Foundation Establishment stage.

The Talisman Hall is controlled by Lin Fengjiao's future master, whose strength seems to be at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage.

The Corpse Driving Hall is controlled by the Four-Eyed Master, whose strength depends on the strength of the zombies he controls.

In addition, there are the Tongyou Hall and the Danyao Hall.

As for the three pavilions, they are the pavilions for storing scriptures, storing treasures, and locking demons.

Each hall has three elders in charge, and Zhong Bai's master, True Man Qian Yuan, is the chief elder of the Law Enforcement Hall.

Night falls.

The roof of the small courtyard.

Looking at the bright moon hanging high in the sky, its light shining brightly, Zhong Bai's mind began to wander.

"After swallowing a golden pill, my fate is now in my own hands, not in the heavens. Ah, the protagonists in novels are all chosen ones."

Why is it that when it comes to my Zhong Baitou, it's all so ordinary and unremarkable?

Shaking his head, Zhong Bai sighed softly, feeling somewhat helpless but also deeply competitive.

"The Shangqing Body Tempering Technique is about to reach minor completion. Tonight marks the beginning of a new chapter in my cultivation journey!"

Gritting his teeth, Zhong Bai took out the jade bottle and swallowed several pills in succession.

Immediately afterwards, he began practicing the Shangqing Body Tempering Technique on the rooftop.

The first picture was completely unobstructed...

The movement in the second picture is also incredibly fast.

………………

In the ninth picture, a fine sheen of sweat begins to appear on his forehead.

By the time I finished the twentieth picture, my hands and feet were aching terribly.

By the time of the thirty-second picture, Zhong Bai's eyes were already bloodshot.

Bang!
The process continued in one go until the thirty-sixth picture was completed, thus bringing the Great Circulation to a complete end.

A wave of heat relentlessly pounded through Zhong Bai's limbs and bones.

The intense, tingling sensation was indescribable; at least for now, Zhong Bai was completely immersed in it, unable to extricate himself.

As his flesh and bones began to transform, Zhong Bai's clothes were already soaked with sweat, and a smear of black grime seeped from his body. Soon, Zhong Bai smelled a foul odor.

However, he had no time to pay attention to these things at the moment. When he achieved minor success in the Shangqing Body Tempering Technique, he was already able to cleanse his body and remove most of the impurities from his body.

This scene is perfectly normal...

Inside the Hall of Law Enforcement.

Master Qian Yuan and the other two elders of the Law Enforcement Hall were originally using the Kui Niu Drum to temper their physical bodies and souls.

However, the next second, Master Qian Yuan opened his long-silent eyes.

His gaze was somewhat intense as he looked towards Zhong Bai's courtyard, and a smile gradually appeared on his face.

"Senior Brother Qian Yuan, your newly accepted disciple has mastered the Shangqing Body Tempering Technique in just one year. Such talent is quite remarkable."

"Now that we, the Hall of Law Enforcement, have been given a successor!"

As the second elder of the Law Enforcement Hall, True Person Liu Gang's eyes were also burning with fervor. After all, Zhong Bai was, in essence, a disciple of their Law Enforcement Hall. If Zhong Bai could successfully establish his foundation and succeed them as an elder of the Law Enforcement Hall in the future, they would have something to be proud of.

Hehe, after all...

Not every palace or pavilion can cultivate a qualified successor.

The minimum standard for becoming an elder in Maoshan is the Foundation Establishment realm, and this has been lowered again and again over the past thousand years.

A thousand years ago, when the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was abundant, no one other than a Nascent Soul Dao Lord could serve as an elder.

Five hundred years ago, before Liu Bowen severed all the dragon veins in the world, Maoshan only allowed Golden Core True Monarchs to serve as elders.

And now... although the standard has been lowered to the Foundation Establishment realm, it is still somewhat awkward.

During the last elder reshuffle, the Corpse Driving Hall had to transfer one Foundation Establishment disciple from the Talisman Hall because it did not have three qualified Foundation Establishment disciples.

Although we're all from the same sect, it's still a loss of face...

The Law Enforcement Hall now has two disciples with considerable talent, who are the personal disciples of the Second Elder Liu Gang and the Third Elder Cui Cheng.

Both Liu Gang and Cui Cheng were confident that they could train these two disciples to reach the Foundation Establishment stage within twenty years.

And Zhong Bai...

He was the first disciple of Qian Yuan Zhenren, the chief elder.

Well, the time for leadership transition will be in twenty years. To go from nothing to the Foundation Establishment stage in twenty years, without some talent and opportunity, it's almost impossible.

Fortunately, it seems that Zhong Bai has decent talent. He mastered the Body Tempering Technique in a year, which is better than their two personal disciples at the time.

It would be a lie to say that Master Qian Yuan was unhappy to hear his junior brother Liu Gang's praise.

It is said that flattery will get you everywhere, and Master Qian Yuan was often teased by his two junior brothers about taking on disciples.

And now... well, with Zhong Bai around, he's had a lot less to worry about.

"Junior brother, stop praising me. Cultivation is not easy. Zhong Bai has only just qualified to embark on the path of cultivation."

His future is still long; reaching the Foundation Establishment stage within twenty years will be quite challenging.

Having said that, Master Qian Yuan stood up.

Zhong Bai is now close to completing the process of cleansing his body and marrow. If no one takes care of him, he will fall into extreme weakness.

So... it's time for his master to make a move.

The roof of the courtyard.

Zhong Bai was completely exhausted, his clothes covered in filth, but his pounding heart told him that he had succeeded!

A gentle breeze swept by, and Qian Yuan came to Zhong Bai's side. With just one glance, he could get a general idea of ​​Zhong Bai's internal condition.

"This kid is really bold, forcibly breaking through to the minor stage of Body Tempering. Luckily, his meridians weren't damaged, otherwise it would have been quite troublesome..."

Shaking his head, Master Qian Yuan stopped watching and casually waved his hand, sending a stream of light instantly into Zhong Bai's body.

Zhong Bai, who had been exhausted, suddenly felt full of energy and vitality.

He rose and bowed deeply.

"Disciple Zhong Bai greets Master!"

"No need for formalities, Zhong Bai. Now that you have mastered the Body Tempering Technique, you can go to the Scripture Pavilion to choose your main cultivation method starting tomorrow."

At this point, Master Qian Yuan's gaze became profound.

"The choice of cultivation method this time will almost determine your path before you reach the Foundation Establishment stage."

We must not underestimate it, nor should we become arrogant or complacent.

Zhong Bai was a little stunned. How did he know what he was suited to cultivate?
But it doesn't matter if you don't understand, your own master is right in front of you, just ask.

"Master, I am filled with fear and confusion. I know nothing about the main cultivation method. Please enlighten me!"

Upon hearing this, Master Qian Yuan's deep gaze immediately relaxed.

Well, thankfully, Zhong Bai wasn't blinded by his minor success in the Body Tempering Technique; his intelligence remained intact.

(End of this chapter)