Chapter 117: 117: This Technique You Can

The supplement was maxed out, and with fully concentrated cultivation, Wang Wu's leveling speed skyrocketed in an instant, soaring to the heavens.

Heavenly veins opened and broadened his meridians; the supplement accelerated cultivation; with a slew of positive buffs and the Earth martial arts talent "stronger through defeat" enhanced, Wang Wu instantly leapt forward, forcefully advancing from mid‑Eighth Grade to the entry of Seventh Grade.

It may sound exaggerated, but in fact it isn't at all.

The human civilization on Shashou Ge's side has already reached the twenty‑first century, after two thousand years of development; naturally, martial arts have a rising ceiling, a lowering threshold, and cultivation has become ever easier.

Moreover, the various auxiliary cultivation pills have naturally become increasingly superior.

People here also use abundant supplements as aids, but they don't call them that; here they're called "pills."

The high‑tech training chambers from Shashou Ge's side become what we call "Heavenly Cavern Blessed Land" here.

Wang Wu doesn't understand the specifics, whether from there or here; he isn't a great scientist and doesn't need to worry about the mechanics of such "training chambers."

"What doesn't kill me only makes me stronger."

It's not merely a self‑motivating slogan; for example, after a person's bones heal, the new bone's density and hardness increase compared to before, a process known in medicine as "bone reconstruction."

Earth martial arts—or the Earthlings of Shashou Ge's world—have this innate skill at an extremely high level, and it isn't limited to bones.

If a typical creature's skill rank is N, then an Earthling's "bone reconstruction" skill rarity is UR.

Each near‑death episode, after bodily recovery, brings a massive attribute boost.

Of course, it must be paired with martial arts; otherwise the upgrade hits a soft ceiling, and a normal person's ceiling stops there.

Martial arts techniques can further enhance the "bone reconstruction" effect and raise the upper limit of attribute gains after a near‑death recovery upgrade.

As an Earthling, Wang Wu naturally fits this method tailor‑made for Earthlings perfectly.

What doesn't kill him only makes him stronger, and as long as he can escape death, he will gain a new upgrade.

Moreover, the speed of cultivating techniques during injury recovery accelerates dramatically, which is why Wang Wu can jump from Eighth to Seventh Grade in just a few days.

Although mainly because the lower three grades of the Extreme Heaven Diamond Sect are the fastest‑cultivating low‑grade techniques in the martial world, eh, that's irrelevant.

"Eek! Ah! Hahaha!! Ha! I made it!!! I made it!!!"

Wang Wu shouted and screamed all the way, his mood wildly exhilarated, like a madman.

But that's no fault of his; after all, a Seventh‑Grade warrior here corresponds not to a petty delusional cultivator but to the Cavern Void Realm.

Starting at ten Mach and peaking at eighteen Mach, this isn't a joke.

One Mach is about 1,225 km/h, so ten Mach means a speed of ten thousand km/h—ten times the speed of sound.

In Wang Wu's hometown, the fastest human‑made aircraft is the X‑43A, which can reach up to 9.7 Mach.

Wang Wu doesn't know the average speed of Cavern Void cultivators, but Li Shangxuan's speed ranked among the faster ones of the few Cavern Void cultivators encountered during the earlier Tongtian City trip.

Whether he's the fastest, Wang Wu doesn't know, but since they're called sword cultivators, they should be renowned for speed.

"Brother‑in‑law! Brother‑in‑law! Stop quickly!"

Trailing the wildly running Wang Wu is Yao Qing, who follows him tightly, calling out nonstop.

But at Yao Qing's pace she can't catch Wang Wu; the guy's speed in the courtyard is practically like flying.

No, ordinary cultivators don't even fly that fast.

But Wang Wu still can't fly.

Even a Seventh‑Grade warrior with ten‑Mach speed cannot fly.

It seemed possible before when Shashou Ge's hometown's martial arts version hadn't been updated, but now only middle‑three‑grade warriors who have mastered atomic power qualify to fly.

It's essentially a stat‑dream‑plus, but the practical little functions and mechanics have been cut, which is undeniably a terrible rating—an ultimate bad review.

After all, mechanics matter more than stats; in games, many people play weak characters simply because their mechanics are good.

But Wang Wu has never encountered the old version of the martial arts, so this isn't an issue for him.

Nevertheless, being able to sprint at ten Mach means whether he flies or not hardly matters to Wang Wu.

With the aid of the Extreme Heaven Leap Technique, he can instantly surge tens of thousands of li. This isn't a joke; a single flip covers about 108,000 li.

The Extreme Heaven Leap Technique isn't the only movement method of the Extreme Heaven Diamond Sect, but it is the most useful for traversing the lower and middle three‑grade realms.

Because it jumps truly far, truly fast, and can keep leaping for a long stretch.

Don't think it's just Ninth‑Grade; Ninth‑Grade doesn't mean trash. Only useless warriors are worthless, not useless techniques… alright, the Diamond Subduing Demon Formation truly serves no purpose in Shashou Ge's hometown.

Because over there they have no Yao Mo Gui Gui.

"Xiao Qing! Haha! I've made it!!!"

Hearing his sister‑in‑law call him, Wang Wu instantly turned and rushed toward her, and before she could react he scooped her up and spun around.

"Hahaha!! Your brother is already Seventh‑Grade!!! Hahahahaha!!!"

That move, without doubt, set Yao Qing's CPU on fire again. When she was set down, she was literally smoking, completely unable to communicate with anyone.

But the over‑excited Wang Wu clearly didn't notice, and after putting down his sister‑in‑law, he turned and ran toward other parts of the Si Tu family mansion.

Yao Qing remained stiffly where she was, taking a long while before she could regain her senses.

At that moment, Li Shangxuan happened to pass the garden, saw his disciple looking up with a dazed expression, face and neck flushed bright red, and simply gave a gentle shake of his head.

"That girl…"

"She can't even tell the difference between romantic love and familial love…"

Yao Qing and Li Tianxuan basically grew up together; for sixteen years they were inseparable, and everyone calls them 'childhood sweethearts.'

But that 'childhood sweetheart' label… in Li Shangxuan's view, who serves as both master and father, honestly might not apply.

Yao Qing certainly loves Li Tianxuan, and Li Tianxuan loves Yao Qing, but the type of love each has may differ slightly.

Li Tianxuan's love for Yao Qing is a perfectly normal romantic love; after all, he's sixteen, in the curious, naive stage of interest in opposite‑sex relationships, and at its peak.

Moreover, Li Tianxuan is strikingly handsome, and throughout his life he's been surrounded by flocks of admirers.

Those women never hide their affection, teasing him at every turn from childhood to adulthood, so Li Tianxuan became quite early in understanding romantic matters.

But for Li Tianxuan, the only woman he truly treasures is just one: his senior sister, his world, his sole—

Yao Qing.

After all, with so many years of emotional foundation, plus a teenage younger brother and a man in his twenties… uh, in short, it's just hard to endure.

But Yao Qing is different; during her naive period she spent all day cultivating, at least half the month in seclusion. At that time, Li Tianxuan was only a seven‑ or eight‑year‑old child.

Moreover, because of her indifferent temperament, she had never experienced this stage.

Although the sect has countless male disciples who like her, they rarely even meet Yao Qing, and her temper isn't very good.

She is like an extremely sharp sword; even the sword qi she emits can cut a person, and she is highly aggressive. Though kind, she never hesitates to kill, and she's even less hesitant to beat people.

To be frank, Li Shangxuan didn't expect Yao Qing to be so defenseless against Wang Wu, but she can't be blamed.

Wang Wu has never "grinded," but over this time those unconscious actions have already maxed out her favor toward him and the "bond" between them.

There's no way around it; Wang Wu matches every aspect of Yao Qing so perfectly that he is literally her destined nemesis.

However, Li Shangxuan doesn't intend to intervene, because Li Tianxuan's earlier behavior has already disappointed him. Even without that incident, Li Shangxuan would still be indifferent.

Love stories, you see, every cultivator who lives a bit longer experiences a few, more or less.

Looking at Yao Qing in the garden, Li Shangxuan can't help recalling his own youthful days, the process of meeting, knowing, and falling in love with his second younger sister.

To be honest, it's quite similar to this.

It also started as friends, then friends became sworn siblings, and after the oath I suddenly realized: "Damn, I'm not just brother‑sister with her."

Then I was tormented by an extremely bitter feeling, that uneasy anxiety of wanting to break through yet fearing that after breaking through I'd have no longer even be friends.

But in the end I couldn't suppress the feeling, and chose to make a bold move.

Thus the sworn brother‑sister relationship turned into a romantic union.

Obviously Yao Qing is in that situation right now.

However, Yao Qing had indeed promised to marry Li Tianxuan before; although she didn't know it wasn't truly love, she thought it was, and Master Li Shangxuan had no objection.

But this wouldn't be a problem in Great Zhou, because the Great Zhou Dynasty doesn't restrict multiple spouses to men only; women can also have several husbands at once.

Of course, marriage in the Great Zhou Dynasty is a dependent marriage, with only one side allowed multiple spouses.

As for who depends on whom in the marriage, that depends on the negotiation between the two parties and the influence of their supporting families.

Thus both men and women can "marry"; a man marries a wife, a woman marries a husband. "Marry off" works the same way, and the party being married off must provide a dowry.

He kept staring at his disciple for a while, then vanished from her sight before her consciousness recovered.

"That kid Tianxuan, sigh…"

Leaving the courtyard, Li Shangxuan held a wine gourd in his hand, took a light sip, and sighed.

He knew his own disciple well; Yao Qing is very unlikely to choose both, she will pick only one.

As for Li Shangxuan's personal preference now, he also leans toward Wang Wu. Yet Yao Qing might not choose that, even if her heart is completely occupied by Wang Wu.

After all, the previous promise still stands.

Wang Wu's excited state lasted from morning until afternoon, when the sun was about to set.

It is currently the Great Cold period; the sun does not rise during the day, and it's a perpetual dark night. Yet above Si Tu Jin's house the sky is bright and the air exceedingly fresh.

Just living here gives one a feeling of utter serenity.

This is what's called a "blessed land."

The sun overhead isn't real; it's an artificial illusion, but the fresh, pleasant air and the extreme comfort are genuine.

Wang Wu plans to train nonstop tonight, all the way until the sun is high the next day, to cultivate hard. After all, he's been holding it in… ahem, never mind.

Until the evening when the Si Tu residence holds a banquet, Wang Wu's smile on his face is unmistakable, though it makes him look a bit odd.

The Si Tu family's banquet still uses a separate‑dish system, just like the West Gate family banquet Wang Wu attended last time.

But this is only a small banquet, attended by a small portion of the Si Tu family and some noble youths from other parts of Nan Zhou.

For example, the tall man sitting at the same table as Si Tu Jin right now.

"Jin sister, is this the Wang Wu you mentioned?" he looked at Si Tu Jin and asked.

This man's appearance is no less than Wang Wu's, belonging to the top tier of humanity. Sitting with Si Tu Jin, everyone present can't help but exclaim:

"Truly a match made by Heaven!"

But Si Tu Jin completely ignored him, leisurely eating, occasionally glancing toward Wang Wu.

The Si Tu family has demon slaves; evidently demonic servants are common in human noble households.

Therefore Wang Wu felt comfortable bringing out the three female demons as well. Unfortunately, Zi Yuan can't manage; it's not just the demonic aura, but also her face, which is a bit too iconic.

Although the face can be disguised, this demonic nature leaves Wang Wu with no good solution at present.

But he plans to go online in a couple of days to ask people from the master's side; otherwise Zi Yuan would have to stay in the spherical fortress forever, which would be too terrible for her.

"Wu Lang, come."

Wu Er Niang wrapped her arms around Wang Wu, and Zhu San Niang, who was in his left hand, lifted a piece of meat with chopsticks and gently placed it at his mouth.

After he finished that bite, Shu Niang, with his right hand, immediately handed him a wine cup to take a sip.

The focus is a life of having clothes handed over and food at the tip of a finger, a life of arrogance and decadence.

"It seems Brother Wang's bond with these three is quite deep,"

After observing the three female demons beside Wang Wu for a while, Si Tu Jin said with a smile.

"What? Do you have an objection?" Wang Wu glanced at the woman opposite, then at the man beside her, before responding to Si Tu Jin.

This man is rather handsome, not inferior to him at all.

That's not showing off; it's Wang Wu, as a demon, giving the highest compliment on a human's looks.

"Ha ha, Brother Wang is being modest," Si Tu Jin shook his head, "But indeed, given Brother Wang's nature, it's not surprising at all."

"What do you mean?" Wang Wu didn't quite understand.

"Not everyone values their demon slaves that way," Si Tu Jin said with a smile. "Demons are scarce, yet for nobles they're easily obtainable, and most nobles don't cherish their demon slaves so much."

"And a demon slave's affection for its master naturally isn't as deep as that of the ones Brother Wang has…"

"They're not my demon slaves," Wang Wu kissed the three girls, "I love them."

"Ha ha, Brother Wang truly values loyalty and righteousness," Si Tu Jin nodded.

Facing Si Tu Jin's praise, Wang Wu gave no reply, merely staring at her.

Under Wang Wu's gaze, Si Tu Jin initially met his eyes for a while, but in less than half a minute she voluntarily lowered her head to eat.

Wang Wu always felt there was some hidden meaning in the woman's words, but he couldn't articulate it. After thinking for a moment, he simply gave up pondering.

Anyway, this woman is always like that, her mind makes ten thousand twists a day. Who knows what she's thinking; he doesn't care anyway.

At the table beside Wang Wu, Yao Qing was dining with her master. The master ate attentively, while Yao Qing occasionally glanced toward Wang Wu while eating.

Mainly she watched Wang Wu, but also the three female demons.

When she saw Wang Wu's lips pressed against the demon's, she suddenly felt a tremor deep inside her body.

Immediately, another scene flashed in her mind: Wang Wu hugging her in the garden during the day.

Yet the replayed scene contained some alterations.

After twirling around while holding her, Wang Wu suddenly stopped, but did not let go.

Then his face drew ever closer, and Yao Qing's heart began to race wildly.

"Sister, I…"

At that moment, Wang Wu's expression when looking at himself turned into the one he wore while kissing those demons. Then he gently lifted with his lips…

"Qing'er?"

The illusion shattered instantly, and the master's voice entered his mind.

Yao Qing snapped back, responding nervously to the master's call: "Master, Master?"

"Eat? Why are you staring over there?"

"Oh…" Yao Qing lowered her head and ate silently.

"I recall Brother Wang hadn't recovered a few days ago, his body riddled with wounds, yet today he's as vigorous as a dragon. Your cultivation method truly is extraordinary."

While Wang Wu was enjoying the carefree feast, he heard the man beside Si Tu Jin speak and turned his gaze toward him.

This small banquet was hosted by Si Tu Jin; besides Wang Wu and the master‑disciple pair Li Shangxuan, there was also the man seated beside her.

"I am Yu Xuan." Seeing Wang Wu look at him, the man also smiled and gave his name.

"Hello." Wang Wu nodded, offering a greeting.

"May I dare address you as Brother Wang?"

"No problem, call me however you wish." Wang Wu took another bite of the food on his chopsticks; not only did the demons feed him, he also used chopsticks to serve them.

It's all about sweetness and affection.

"I, like you, Brother Wang, am a true‑realm warrior and greatly admire the sect you come from. Though I know most worldly sects dislike outsiders, I still dare to…"

This is a gathering of youths, so speaking bluntly is natural; it's an unspoken rule among the Southern Province aristocracy.

"You can't learn it." Wang Wu said bluntly, "I'm not a true‑realm warrior; I'm actually a demonic cultivator, practicing the demonic path."

Seeing Yu Xuan about to speak, Wang Wu gave him no chance and continued, "You probably want to say that whether I'm demonic or not doesn't matter, since you only want to see my sect, right?"

"That's impossible." Wang Wu shook his head, "You can't cultivate my technique, or rather, you lack the talent."

"I'm not referring to your talent on the true Dao path, but to your ability to practice the techniques of my sect."

After speaking, Wang Wu took a book from his ring and tossed it over; it was the paper version of the Ninth‑Rank Extreme Heaven Vajra Sect core method he had printed earlier with the fortress printer, complete with his notes.

Zhu San Niang and the other demons couldn't practice Wang Wu's Earth techniques, so he wondered if Wang Lan could.

At that time the fortress had just been upgraded, so he used its printer to produce several copies of the techniques, adding many annotations—essentially copying the textbook.

But Wang Lan also couldn't learn them, which left him somewhat disappointed.

He had thought it might be due to Wang Lan's inherently narrow true meridian, and even asked the master, but the master's answer remained the same:

Bo Sheng Turtle forced your mom to die: No, why did you say alien demons can't use it, but alien humans can?

Bo Sheng Turtle forced your mom to die: Didn't I already tell you that aliens can't use Earth techniques? There's no need for you to try.

Mountain-top Cave Monster: Then why can the medicine affect aliens, Master?

Bo Sheng Turtle forced your mom to die: You beast can use it, and your friend's alien still has some human blood, right? Why can't he use it?

Bo Sheng Turtle forced your mom to die: Um, the master didn't mean to call you a beast; it's just that you demons all cultivate as animals, right?

Mountain-top Cave Monster: It's fine, Master, your words aren't really a problem.

Earth demons can use Earth medicine and also practice Earth techniques; that is, of course, reasonable.

Aliens can use Earth medicine, but cannot practice Earth techniques; that is also reasonable.

No problem, folks.

That's why Wang Wu tossed the technique over without hesitation; the master had already issued a verdict, so if one can't cultivate it, it's truly impossible.

Seeing Yu Xuan take the booklet Wang Wu had thrown, Wang Wu said, "This is my Ninth‑Rank Extreme Heaven Vajra Sect introductory method 'Unbreakable Vajra Wheel Technique'; you can try practicing it, and it includes my annotations."

"But I must still warn you not to overthink, or you'll end up tinkering and accidentally kill yourself."

Si Tu Jin had initially been interested in the booklet Wang Wu tossed, but after hearing Wang Wu say they couldn't practice it, she immediately gave up, not even glancing at it again.

"Brother Wang."

Among the other silent members of the Si Tu family at the banquet, one finally called out to Wang Wu.

Wang Wu looked at the person and found a man who looked strikingly similar to Si Tu Jin… uh, a man?

"Who are you?" Wang Wu asked.

"I am Si Tu Qing, brother of Si Tu Jin." The man bowed to Wang Wu, then stared at him with burning eyes, making Wang Wu's scalp tingle.

"You, what do you want to do?"

It even made Wang Wu somewhat fearful.

"Brother Wang, have your injuries fully healed?" Si Tu Qing asked.

"What?"

May I ask whether you could grant me a lesson?

(End of chapter)