Chapter 30

Yu Yu turned back into a cheap, crude white jade carving again, but Bai Lang remembered the vivid beauty when it was animated. "Should I discard it?" Bai Lang thought about it, and finally tucked it into his chest. At that moment Bai Lang realized that the clothes he was wearing were actually the same "costume" he had before he transmigrated, and, unsurprisingly, the PPK pistol he had carried was gone…

"So this is how you block modern firearms?" Bai Lang laughed. His body was still that of a fifteen‑ or sixteen‑year‑old boy from before the transmigration, though due to his cultivation he appeared about seventeen or eighteen. With each breath, the Internal Force of his Golden Bell Shield circulated spontaneously, and within his breathing he could hear a sound like a tiger snoring.

"Ha! This cultivated skill can actually be brought back!" Bai Lang was overjoyed and immediately thought it was wise to keep Yu Yu. "Time's flow still halted at the moment I transmigrated." That was the conclusion Bai Lang reached after stepping outside—because the idle men who saw him showed not the slightest surprise, it seemed they hadn't been away for years without returning.

During the years since his transmigration, the small amount of ointment he initially brought had long been used up, so Bai Lang retrieved the ointment issued by the Chang Le Gang from his room, applied a layer to himself, and began to cultivate Qi. Through this practice he was delighted to find that the second stage of his Golden Bell Shield was beginning to loosen, and as his Internal Force roamed, it seemed ready to surge through his meridians.

At that moment Bai Lang let out an "ah" and recalled an urgent matter: he needed to quickly transcribe the Golden Bell Shield manual. Of course the original manual hadn't come with him, but fortunately Bai Lang had already memorized the entire text—including the diagrams. However, a good memory is not as reliable as a lousy pen, so it was better to write it down promptly.

As for whether it would be stolen or exposed, Bai Lang scoffed—"I'm just a lowly thug in the Tooth Guild, barely a head of the enforcers; would anyone specifically watch me to see what opportunity I might gain? Hahaha." The situation was indeed like that; the Chang Le Gang didn't place much importance on members like him—those who are merely mid‑rank foot soldiers.

Those who truly do business for the gang—seizing territory or handling other important matters—are people like Mo Di, who have caught the eyes of the higher‑ups and possess innate talent; after being taken as disciples by elder‑level figures in the gang, they are taught various divine techniques, and such individuals are the ones with real prospects. Bai Lang knows that, without any extraordinary encounters, rising through the ranks to become a Deputy Incense Master in his lifetime would already be considered a success.

Thus, at first they gave him two mass‑produced manuals and a monthly allotment of bruising ointment, which was already fairly generous for a rank‑and‑file member, not to mention a monthly stipend and side earnings—perhaps a slightly better life than an ordinary civilian's. Each month there was also a so‑called "contribution"; once accumulated enough, it could be exchanged at the hall of a Teaching Elder for other martial arts manuals or pills.

However now, having cultivated the Golden Bell Shield and opened the Microcosmic Orbit, Bai Lang already stands in the upper half of his peers—opening the Microcosmic Orbit at his age is quite respectable, and if he continues to train hard, advancement in martial arts could eventually bring him to the rank of Incense Master or even Deputy Branch Leader. Yet when he thinks of Mo Di… Bai Lang can only give a wry smile; his current starting point had already been reached by others years ago.

What level has Mo Di's martial arts reached now? Bai Lang couldn't imagine and didn't bother to think; it was certainly far stronger than his own. At present, Bai Lang's task is to quietly and diligently cultivate so as to break through the second and third stages of the Golden Bell Shield—he is quite confident about this. After all, the three stages constitute a major stage, and for the initial major stage Bai Lang feels he has no problem.

Reaching the sixth stage would likely allow him to enter the Innate Expert tier—Bai Lang believes that only upon reaching that point can he truly understand the subtleties of martial knowledge transmission in this world. "Perhaps only when I myself step into that tier will I grasp what the world's masters are truly like."

Now, as a thug of the Tooth Guild, his information network is fairly active, but the news that truly involves upper‑level martial world figures remains obscure to ordinary people. For example, Bai Lang only knows of a Heaven‑Earth‑Human List, and his own gang leader appears to be listed by name, but the details are unclear—because he spends his days focusing on cultivation rather than actively inquiring.

At present it seems he has found his own opportunity, and looking ahead there is genuine hope.

The breakthrough requirement for the Golden Bell Shield is to open the meridians; the second stage demands opening the twelve primary meridians, allowing Internal Force to circulate endlessly within them. Ideally the eight extraordinary vessels are also fully connected, though the Ren and Du meridians need not be linked—just achieving that connection is already a half‑step into the Innate level.

Thus what Bai Lang now needs is to continuously amass his Internal Force cultivation, the richer the better—though the Golden Bell Shield may not be the optimal method for storing Internal Force, it excels at making the force robust and is equally effective in combat; however, for pure Internal Force and life‑energy cultivation, it falls a bit short.

According to the nonsense Bai Lang recalls, the Golden Bell Shield cultivates the body's essence and blood, whereas true Qi cultivation should use the Yi Jin Jing… but Bai Lang doesn't have that text, and besides, the Golden Bell Shield refines a breath of true Qi from the outside inward, which suits him better; at least "it won't be worse than Hong Qi," is the confidence Bai Lang now holds.

However, Hong Qi possesses the Dragon Subduing 18 Palms, and his personal martial wisdom is likely far beyond Bai Lang's… Bai Lang's current style consists only of the Tiger Form True Meaning derived from the Thirty‑Two Path Long Fist and its fist scriptures, lacking any truly remarkable technique. "Should I train with a set of weapons? What kind of weapon suits me?" Bai Lang thinks that relying solely on fists and feet may not suffice; he needs to learn some weaponry.

Yet there are many weapons; the eighteen categories are only a fraction—"long spears, great halberds, swords, knives, staffs, clubs; which should I learn?" Bai Lang feels he must consider it carefully, but soon realizes it's just idle speculation… He does want to learn sword techniques, but who would teach him? Which sword manual could he obtain? The same goes for spears, halberds—there's no place to study them for a short time, and figuring it out on his own would likely waste time retracing paths others walked long ago.

Every sword technique embodies a philosophy and its own doctrine; if he explores on his own, perhaps he could master a single fresh move, but truly grasping sword intent is exceedingly difficult. By contrast, knife techniques are simpler, with a lower entry barrier—just various cuts and thrusts… As for the deeper principles of a complete knife system, he can study those later.

"So, can a sword be understood as a double‑edged knife?" Bai Lang said likewise—it's not surprising, since in his knowledge Western greatswords or hand‑and‑half swords essentially blur the line between sword and knife.