Elderly Martial Saint: Sixty Times the Cultivation Speed ​​at the Start

The old man looked at the yellowed silk scroll in Yi Yang's hand, shook his head, and said with a helpless tone that suggested he had seen it all before:

"This thing has been in the armory for thirteen years."

He turned to the first few pages of the register that recorded this technique and showed them to Yi Yang.

Yi Yang saw that there were many names on the booklet, but each name was followed by the same result: "Not yet entered the sect, return."

"The day after the news spread that the Chief Inspector was unable to complete the cultivation technique, Xiao Zhengyan of the Punishment Division borrowed it."

The old man held up one finger and pointed downwards as if counting: "Returned in seven days, still no progress. Next was Ji Yunzhang from the Evil-Slaying Division, half a month, still no progress. Wen Shiheng from the Knowledge and Knowledge Division took it for a whole month, studied it diligently, and finally returned it with a shake of his head."

He paused, looked up at Yi Yang's expression, and wondered if he had managed to persuade him.

But seeing that the other party was simply listening quietly, showing no signs of impatience or wavering, he continued:

"Later, it wasn't just the four departments; experts from all walks of life, as long as they met the merit requirements, almost all of them came to borrow this scroll of silk."

The old man counted on his fingers and said, "All three patrol supervisors under the Evil-Slaying Division have been tried. Two of your subordinates from the Nether Spring Division have also been tried. Even people from the Zhenfu Guard heard the news and came over. They were all sent back when the one-month deadline was up, without exception."

He closed the register, pressed his palm against the cover, and offered a kind reminder with a hint of goodwill in his eyes:

"I've guarded this armory for decades, and I've seen far too many young men come seeking my expertise."

"The conditions for cultivating this technique remain unsolved to this day. However, it's speculated that because the technique is incomplete, lacking dynamic elements, static elements also cannot be activated for cultivation. It's like a lock missing half a key; no matter how you turn it, you can't open it."

"This deputy director."

The old man slowed his speech and looked intently into Yi Yang's eyes as he spoke:

"Records of merit are invaluable; it's not worth wasting them on."

"I advise you to switch to another technique—the Seven Fiends Piercing Cloud Spear, although it only has the first three moves, those three moves are truly useful on the battlefield. The same goes for the Void Stepping Technique; even if you only master one level of the first two, your movement skills will improve considerably..."

"It's better than this thing that I can't master no matter what I do."

Having said all that, this was the old man's last resort. If Yi Yang didn't listen, there was nothing he could do.

The old man who had guarded the armory for decades had seen far more people and things than Yi Yang could imagine. He wasn't trying to discourage him; he was offering sincere advice.

But Yi Yang held the silk book in his hand, his thumb stroking the rough texture of the cover.

Thirteen years.

The four deputy chief inspectors, along with countless experts at the Inner Qi Realm, all returned defeated.

For most people, this amount of information would be enough to deter them.

But Yi Yang is no ordinary person.

He tugged at the corner of his mouth, pressed the silk scroll to his chest, and said in a calm but stubborn tone:

"Senior, I've decided on this one. Although I'm old, I still have some youthful spirit and want to try it out and see what kind of technique even the Chief Inspector can't master."

The old man was stunned; he hadn't expected Yi Yang to give such a reason.

The old man looked at him for three breaths, finally sighed, took out a register from the drawer, turned to the latest page, picked up a pen, dipped it in ink, and wrote as he spoke:

"Then I'll register you. The rules remain the same: you can take the booklet of this technique with you for one month, after which you must return it regardless of whether you've mastered it or not."

The pen moved across the paper: "Failure to return the loan on time or wishing to renew it will require another credit. If you keep it and don't return it..."

The old man looked up, his gaze sweeping over the pen holder, and warned in a slightly deeper voice, "Treat this as treason, and have the Sky Patrol Division hunt you down and kill you."

Yi Yang nodded, his expression very serious. He knew this was no joke: "I'll remember."

Finally, the old man pushed the register over for him to sign and put his fingerprint on.

Yi Yang picked up his pen and wrote his name in a few strokes, the characters square and neat.

After all the formalities were completed, the silk book was carefully placed inside the inner pocket of his body.

Yi Yang bowed to the old man in thanks, then turned and walked out the door.

After taking two steps, I heard the old man's voice behind me, with a hint of self-deprecating laughter.

"You're the forty-seventh."

Yi Yang didn't turn around.

He walked down the stairs and stood at the doorway, tightening his grip on the silk book in his arms. The curve of his lips was so faint that it was almost invisible.

Others can't fix it.

That's someone else.

He is destined for greatness.

There are no qualification requirements or bottlenecks.

As long as you put in the time and effort, progress will increase.

This ironclad rule has been verified all the way from Sanmu Village to the prefectural city, from the first level of Qi and Blood to the second level of Internal Qi, and has never been wrong.

Thirteen years and no one has entered the gate?

That only means that the requirements for aptitude in this technique are ridiculously high, and the word "aptitude" is exactly what fate helped him overcome.

"Since no one has succeeded, then let me, Yi Yang, be the first!"

With that thought, Yi Yang stepped out of the armory gate.

But before his feet even touched the ground, he caught a glimpse of a blue figure beside the armory out of the corner of his eye.

Liu Qing stood with his arms crossed by the pillars, looking as if he had been waiting for a while.

The maid's face remained expressionless; she simply spoke briefly and decisively upon seeing Yi Yang emerge:

"The young lady needs to see you. Come with me."

They didn't care what he took from the armory, didn't ask him what he was there for, and even skipped the small talk.

But Yi Yang noticed a detail.

Liu Qing walked at a pace two minutes faster than usual.

It's not that I'm in a hurry, it's that I'm urging them.

Yi Yang didn't ask any more questions, put aside his thoughts about the silk scroll, adjusted his breathing, and followed.

The two left the Hall of Judgment and then went to the main hall where the Underworld Bureau was located.

Upon reaching their destination, Liu Qing stopped, stepped aside to make way, and gestured for Yi Yang to go in alone.

Without the slightest hesitation, Yi Yang pushed open the door and entered.

The scene in the hall made him pause slightly.

Yan Wuyuan did not sit behind the long sandalwood table.

She leaned back on the soft couch beside the desk, her right hand supporting her chin, her left hand casually flipping through an old book.

The neckline of her dark palace dress was slightly undone, and a white jade hairpin was casually inserted into her hair, with a few strands of hair falling down her side of her neck.

She exuded a lazy aura from head to toe, completely different from her usual aloof and unapproachable demeanor.

Upon seeing this, Yi Yang's eyelids twitched.

Yi Yang was stunned by the rare and beautiful scenery, but he quickly looked away, bowed his head, and stood still to wait for Yan Wuyuan's question.

The hall was quiet for a few moments.

The soft sound of pages turning stopped, and then a clear, cold voice said:

"You've made great progress!"

Yan Wuyuan's voice came from the direction of the soft couch, his tone casual, as if he were talking casually.

But the next sentence made the hairs on Yi Yang's spine stand on end.

"You're almost at the perfect level of the second stage of Inner Qi cultivation. I remember when you came here, you had only just entered the second stage of Inner Qi cultivation."

Yi Yang's breathing remained unchanged, his facial expression remained unchanged, and his posture remained unchanged.

But his mind was jolted.

From the very first day he entered the Netherworld Bureau, he began to cultivate his internal energy to conceal his cultivation level.

Back then, even Qi Shujian couldn't see through this technique when he was in Yunlin County.

But in front of this woman, it became a low-class tactic.

Yan Wuyuan knew Yi Yang's true cultivation level from day one.

This woman knew perfectly well what his cultivation level was when he arrived, what his current cultivation level was, whether he was hiding anything, and how much he was hiding.

Yi Yang's Adam's apple bobbed as he was about to speak, unsure of what to say—whether to explain or probe.

But at this moment, Yan Wuyuan, who was lying on the soft couch, raised her right hand, waved it casually, and said casually:

"Do not be nervous."

"I'm not interested in your abilities."

Hearing her words, Yi Yang smiled bitterly to himself. In her eyes, his second level of internal energy was nothing, not even worth caring about.

All the scheming and maneuvering you put into hiding is nothing but a trivial matter in the face of a true powerhouse.

But at the same time, the tension in his heart eased.

At this moment, Yan Wuyuan straightened up from the soft couch and casually put the old book aside.

She turned sideways and reached into a hidden compartment beside the rosewood table, took out a palm-sized white jade box, and pushed it with her index finger, causing the box to slide down the table to Yi Yang's side.

At the same time, the lid of the box was opened.

The aroma of herbs burst forth.

It wasn't the faint herbal scent that permeated a traditional medicine shop; it was a strong, domineering, scorching heat.

With a metallic spiciness and the unique sweetness of fruit, two completely opposite flavors mingled together, rushing straight from the nasal cavity to the top of the head.

Upon sensing this aura, Yi Yang's dantian trembled uncontrollably.

His body instincts told him that he needed this.

A fruit lay quietly inside the jade box.

It is bright red all over, only slightly larger than a longan, with a smooth skin and faint, fine golden lines flowing through it, like living veins pulsating.

Yi Yang stared at the fruit, his pupils contracting and dilating as he thought.

"Eat this first."

Yan Wuyuan's voice rang out.

There was no explanation of what it was, no explanation of why it was given to him, and no question of whether he wanted it.

That's all.

It's as natural as saying, "There's tea on the table, pour yourself some."

But Yi Yang did not dare to make any rash moves.

His mind was racing.

Yan Wuyuan had no reason to harm him. As a mere second-level internal energy cultivator, he didn't even have the right to cause trouble in front of this woman. She wouldn't even need to lift a finger to kill him.

But there's no reason to give it away for free.

There's no such thing as a free lunch; Yi Yang will definitely have to pay a price for this success.

However, he had no reason to refuse. If he ate this fruit, he would immediately break through to the third level of internal energy and his strength would also increase significantly.

Three breaths passed.

Yi Yang extended his hand; he had no reason or right to refuse.

The moment my fingertips touched the fruit's skin, a warm sensation emanated from the point of contact, like holding a ball of burning charcoal wrapped in silk.

He looked up and glanced at Yan Wuyuan.

The other person tilted their head, rested their chin on their right hand, and the curve of their lips was barely visible; the emotions in their eyes were so profound that he couldn't read a single word.

Yi Yang decisively put the fruit into his mouth.

The sensation of the fruit peel cracking had just reached my teeth when—

The powerful medicinal properties exploded in his mouth.

It's not like the gradual, gentle release of heat from a medicinal pill; it's like a dam bursting.

The scalding energy penetrates directly from the mouth to the stomach wall, and then pours into the meridians all at once.

That power was more than ten times stronger than all the precious pills he had ever used combined.

The Qi Sea was turned upside down by this foreign energy.

Sweat instantly beaded on Yi Yang's forehead, but he immediately ate all the fruit.

Then there was no time to think about what it was. No time to ask why.

He bent his knees and sat cross-legged on the spot, focusing all his mind on circulating his internal energy, desperately trying to guide the violent medicinal power back to the right path.

Yan Wuyuan, who was on the soft couch, changed her position, resting her chin on the back of her folded hands, and her gaze fell on Yi Yang.

The curve of her lips was slightly deeper than before.