NOVEL NEXT Chapter 111: Bright Strength 9th Stage
Chapter 111: Bright Strength 9th Stage
As the Town Guard Commander produced the 300,000 spirit stones, Xu Lian, who was in the western courtyard of the Lin family residence, opened his eyes. He found Lin Wan and told her that he wanted to visit her parents at their spirit residence on First Street.
Such filial intentions naturally pleased Lin Wan, and she agreed to accompany him. Together, they left the Lin family residence, boarded a carriage, and went to First Street.
Now that Xu Lian and Lin Wan had a spirit residence on First Street, their comings and goings had become much more convenient.
When they arrived, they walked along First Street.
As they passed by a pile of trash, Xu Lian bent down briefly, and when he stood back up, the spatial pouch and the 300,090 Spirit Stones had already found their way into his possession.
This wasn’t the first time he had done something like this during their visits, and although Lin Wan was a bit puzzled, she didn’t ask too many questions. She led him to the purchased Class C residence, opened the door and they stepped inside.
“The room on the far right is ours. During the three months you were gone, I cultivated in there. My parents have been cultivating in the room next to it. The two rooms in the middle have been rented out to wandering cultivators, and the three rooms on the left belong to the Tong family. Two of them have also been rented out to wandering cultivators, while the Tong Family uses the room on the far left.”
Lin Wan briefly explained the layout to Xu Lian.
Then she led him to the room next to theirs and knocked on the door. “Father, Mother, Xu Lian has returned and would like to pay you a visit.”
The door creaked open.
Xu Lian was surprised to see not only Lin Yue and Hua Rongjun, but also two middle-aged couples, five or six young men and women, and a group of children.
“Father, Mother, I’m back,” Xu Lian said as he stood at the door and bowed respectfully. He didn’t dare to step inside as there was hardly any room to stand.
Hua Rongjun chuckled. “Xu Lian, you’re always so formal. You didn’t have to come all this way just to visit us.”
Actually, it’s mainly to retrieve the spirit stones… Xu Lian thought, but he replied, “I’m Lin Wan’s husband, so it’s only right that I visit you often.”
Lin Yue then introduced everyone in the room to Xu Lian.
Xu Lian quickly understood that the two middle-aged couples were Lin Wan’s aunts and uncles, the five or six young men and women were her cousins, and the group of children were her younger cousins. Despite their young age, they had already started cultivating, which was why they were here.
With so many people crammed into a room of only a few square meters, the adults seemed fine, but the young men and women, as well as the children, looked visibly uncomfortable. It was clear from their expressions that they felt trapped.
Xu Lian stood at the door, bowed to Lin Wan’s uncles, aunts, and other relatives, and engaged in some light conversation before preparing to leave.
A curious young girl looked at Xu Lian and suddenly asked, “You don’t look much older than me. How did you become my eldest sister’s husband?”
The other young men, women, and children also widened their eyes in curiosity.
Xu Lian was at a loss for words. He didn’t know how to respond, so he simply smiled and said, “Age isn’t an issue, and height isn’t a barrier. If we get along, what’s the big deal?”
Lin Wan’s aunt shot a stern look at the girl who had asked the question. “Why do you have so many questions? Concentrate on your cultivation!”
The girl muttered under her breath, “Cultivating like this in the spirit residence isn’t very effective. It would be better if we could cultivate freely. Even coming here once in a while would be better than this.”
The other young men, women, and children began to chime in, demanding that they be allowed to cultivate outside.
But their protests were quickly put down by the adults in the Lin family. The reason was simple: the concentration of spiritual energy was higher here, and even if cultivating in such cramped conditions wasn’t ideal, it was still better than cultivating outside.
Xu Lian didn’t understand much about cultivation matters, so he didn’t feel qualified to offer any advice. After a simple farewell, he followed Lin Wan to the room on the far right.
Cultivating wasn’t an option for him-he simply didn’t know how-so he focused on other tasks instead.
After finishing his work, Lin Wan stayed behind to cultivate while Xu Lian left. Lin Wan didn’t try to stop him, knowing that he had his own affairs to attend to.
After leaving First Street, Xu Lian went straight to the Spiritual Essence Tower.
He found the same saleswoman as last time and bought 170 Condensation Pills in one go.
Returning to the western courtyard of the Lin family residence, Xu Lian allocated progression points to his rank. Then, holding 256 Condensation Pills in his hands, he silently recited the incantation to add ingredients and began his advancement.
Without a sound, the Condensation Pills turned to ash, and in an instant, the qi within his body surged to an unprecedented level, flowing like a surging river.
[Name: Xu Lian]
[Rank: Bright Strength Rank, 9th Stage]
[Skills: Shattering Wind Sword Technique (Volume 1,2 & 3), Seven Styles of Primordial Gang (Complete)]
[Items: None (1-Star Longsword not equipped)]
[Note: You have two unused progress points].
“Allocate progression points to rank!” Xu Lian eagerly added the points to his rank, wanting to see what ingredients were needed for the next level.
[Rank advancement successful. Add one Nightbloom Flower to advance to the Dark Strength Stage, 1st level].
What was a Nightbloom Flower?
Xu Lian could only guess… It must be some kind of cultivation resource, certainly not an ordinary item. Moreover, it was likely far more expensive than Condensation Pills, as he had already noticed that the higher the rank, the more costly the required ingredients.
“With 300,000 Spirit Stones, I should be able to buy all the ingredients needed for the Dark Strength Stage from the 1st to the 9th layer. Now, I’m not short of Spirit Stones for ingredients, but I still need Progression Points.”
Xu Lian immediately thought of Little Pepper Pei Zhaoxi. Her favorability toward him was already at 80/100, and with a bit more effort, he should be able to reach 90/100. At that point, she would likely provide him with progression points.
Leaving the western courtyard, Xu Lian instructed the cook to prepare a box of pastries, which he placed in a food carrier.
The cook smiled. “Master Xu, despite the age difference between you and the eldest young lady, your relationship is truly strong. You’ve just returned, and you’re already bringing her pastries.”
Or maybe they’re for Little Pepper… Xu Lian didn’t bother to explain. He picked up the food carrier, left the Lin family residence, mounted his black horse and set off to find Pei Zhaoxi.
“When I saw Pei Zhaoxi off at the ferry with Pei Heng, she mentioned the martial arts academy where she was studying. It was called the Mountain Shaking Martial Arts Academy.”
Xu Lian asked a passerby for directions to the Mountain-Shaking Martial Arts Academy and learned that it was located on Fourth Street. Then he rode his horse toward Fourth Street.
Upon arriving at Fourth Street, he found the Mountain-Shaking Martial Arts Academy. Inside, the sounds of “huh-hah” and “huh-hah” filled the air as students practiced their moves. Xu Lian approached the gatekeeper and asked to see someone.
The gatekeeper gestured with his hand, indicating that Xu Lian needed to pay a fee.
Xu Lian didn’t argue about the fee and simply threw a silver ingot at the gatekeeper.
The gatekeeper caught the silver, gave a dismissive nod and said, “Go in and find her yourself”.
Xu Lian stepped inside with the food carrier.
The academy was quite large, with several training grounds. Each training ground had a square formation of students, both male and female, practicing martial arts.
The youngest group consisted of children about seven or eight years old, probably from wealthy families.
The slightly older group consisted of teenagers and young women, clearly showing a solid foundation in martial arts.
The oldest group consisted of young men and women who had already reached the Skin Refining Stage, marking their entry into the realm of cultivators.
Pei Heng and Pei Zhaoxi were in the middle group, the group of teenagers and young women with a martial arts foundation. Being significantly older than the others, Pei Heng looked a bit out of place, but Pei Zhaoxi fit in well as she was still within the age range of the group.
Xu Lian didn’t interrupt their training. Instead, he joined the group of visitors, which included a few others who were waiting to see someone.
After about half an hour, the martial arts instructor leading the middle group announced a break.
Xu Lian, who was carrying the food carrier, walked toward Pei Zhaoxi, intending to surprise her. However, as he approached, he saw a young man from the oldest group-a young man with a water flask-walk up to Pei Zhaoxi. The man handed her the flask with a smile and said, “Zhaoxi, I watched you practice earlier. You’ve got a lot of power. I think you’ll soon reach the Skin Refining Stage.”
This made Xu Lian pause. He decided to watch from a distance to see what kind of relationship Pei Zhaoxi had with this young man. After all, her favorability toward him was already at 80/100, and she was technically his wife. It shouldn’t be so easy for her to change her feelings.
Pei Zhaoxi didn’t take the water bottle from the young man. Instead, she grabbed a towel and began wiping away her sweat.
Xu Lian found himself entranced. There was no doubt about it-even among the many attractive female martial artists in the academy, Pei Zhaoxi stood out. Her face was beautiful, and her figure was perfectly balanced – not too tall, not too short, not too thin, not too plump. Wearing her training outfit, she exuded a youthful and vibrant charm.
Pei Heng approached with two water bottles and handed one to Pei Zhaoxi. He frowned at the young man and said, “Chen Xuan, I’ve told you many times. Zhaoxi has a husband and they are already married. Please stop bothering her.”
Chen Xuan’s smile didn’t falter. “So what? A man from some remote place like Green Bamboo Town? He can’t be compared to me. The only thing I regret is that Zhaoxi didn’t come to Pingyang County before she had a husband. Otherwise, how could someone from a remote place like Green Bamboo Town have gotten to her first?”
Xu Lian understood now. This Chen Xuan was just another suitor, and his arrogance was quite apparent. If he were truly as capable as he claimed, why would he need to train at a martial arts academy?
In Pingyang County, families like the Lin and Tong clans who had some cultivation resources had their own training methods that were far superior to what a martial arts academy could offer. They didn’t need to send their children to such places. Even less so for the descendants of the county’s powerful noble families.
So, this Chen Xuan probably came from a family that wasn’t even a cultivator clan, but a wealthy household at best.