Chapter 9

"I've entered the rank?!"

Li Rui looked at everything happening to him in disbelief.

These traces all indicate that he has stepped into the Stone Skin Realm.

Jade skin, blood rushing to the top!

He had been practicing the Eight-Section Brocade with his head down, not expecting to break through to the Stone Skin Realm naturally.

The Qinghe martial arts world has always circulated this sentence:

"Three years for skin, ten years for bone, a lifetime for sinew."

It means that for ordinary people to enter the Stone Skin Realm, it takes at least three years, but Li Rui only used one month!!

This speed is really too frightening.

I'm afraid it's no less than those prodigies of the great sects.

He is now a perfect life, so it's not too much to be outstanding, right?

But the more this is the case, the more Li Rui must keep his secret; he is already seventy years old, had never practiced martial arts before, and now suddenly entered the rank; anyone with eyes can see the strangeness.

If people know he has a Wu Gu, it will definitely lead to disaster.

Must not be proud and complacent.

Possessing ten parts, showing only three or four to outsiders, this is considered entering the gate; if one can be like that old demon surnamed Han, that is considered entering the hall.

After entering the rank.

The path he can take is much wider.

The Great Yu was founded on martial arts and attaches great importance to martial arts masters.

The best path is, of course, to participate in the martial arts examination.

Learn literary and martial arts, sell to the Emperor's family.

The founding Emperor Taizu of the Great Yu, in order to absorb the talents of the world, opened the imperial examination; the status of the martial arts examination is on par with the literary examination; as long as one can get the status of a provincial graduate, one can at least be a registrar, a court official registered in the Ministry of Personnel.

Endless blessings.

With an official status, Li Rui can also have more time to seek immortality and ask about the Dao.

Otherwise, even with a world-shocking Wu Gu, he will eventually turn into a handful of yellow soil in ten years, and everything will be empty.

"Wait until next spring to go to the Master to grant grace."

In three more months, he will be seventy.

According to the laws of the Yu Kingdom, those who are slaves can shed their status after seventy and become white households to show filial piety.

Although he has now entered the rank, he can shed his status as long as he reveals his strength.

But he is already nearly seventy; others are at the age of being in the grave, but he has become a martial arts master; saying it out loud is too shocking, and he fears someone will think he obtained a great fortune, attracting villains to covet it.

Don't fear thieves stealing, fear thieves thinking about it.

Li Rui doesn't want to sleep with a knife under his pillow.

Becoming a martial arts master is still a mortal body; a stab will still kill, so no amount of caution is too much.

"Already endured for decades, a few months won't hurt."

After the tempering of time, what Li Rui lacks least is patience.

"Truly a good horse!"

Li Rui touched the four new large red horses in the stable and praised secretly.

Pure coat color, not a single mixed hair, representing good bloodline, pure-blooded Dawan horse, tsk, tsk, one is worth at least a thousand gold.

Also has another more well-known name.

Sweat-blood treasure horse!

Worthy of being a disciple of the Huaqing Sect, truly arrogant.

He has been raising horses for so many years, and it's only every time the Zhu family's eldest young master comes home to visit that he can take a look.

The next second—

A clear voice sounded behind him.

"Strange, my Little Red has a weird temper and has always been unapproachable to strangers, how come it's so affectionate to you, groom."

"Zhu Gan, your residence is truly full of talents."

Li Rui turned around and saw the Zhu family's eldest young master, Zhu Yue, with the three people from the Huaqing Sect already appearing not far away.

"Eldest Young Master."

Li Rui turned around respectfully.

Getting Han Qin's praise, Zhu Yue was in a great mood:

"Old Li, you've done well; I remember you'll be seventy in a few months, right?"

"Yes, Young Master."

Zhu Yue secretly prided himself on his good memory: "Wait a few days, I'll tell Father to increase your pay."

"Thank you, Young Master."

Li Rui looked flattering.

These rich young masters are just stupid and have money; as long as they are happy, they scatter money everywhere. He was just praised by that Huaqing Sect disciple, and the pay that hadn't increased for more than ten years increased for the first time.

The bigger the family, the more they care about face.

Zhou Hu on the side couldn't help urging: "Senior Brother, let's set off quickly, don't let that traitor run away."

"Indeed."

Han Qin nodded unhurriedly.

"Zhu Gan, why not let this old groom go with us; there's always a need for someone to watch the horses."

Hearing the words of that Huaqing Sect disciple.

Li Rui's heart tightened.

He had just heard the word 'traitor', and it was clear that these people should be pursuing that traitor.

But Zhu Yue didn't give him a chance to refuse: "Senior Brother Han is truly thoughtful; Old Li, you just follow us."

"Yes."

Li Rui had no choice but to agree.

His status is still the groom of the Zhu family, and he has no power to refuse; otherwise, if Zhu Yue gets angry and punishes him, it will definitely be unbearable, and being beaten to death is possible.

Besides, he is just watching the horses on the periphery, so there shouldn't be any danger.

In the forest outside the city.

"Distinguished Masters."

A middle-aged man in a dark blue official uniform saw Zhu Yue and the others riding horses and came to greet them with two quick steps.

"Head Catcher Liu, thank you for your hard work."

Zhu Yue jumped off his horse like a light swallow, his movements elegant and neat.

The Zhu family has great influence in Qinghe and has a deep friendship with the government, which is why they could mobilize over a dozen catchers to help them search for clues.

"No hard work; an herbalist saw that thief hiding in a ruined temple halfway up the mountain."

The catcher surnamed Liu pointed to the forest.

Hearing that the whereabouts of the traitor had been found, Zhu Yue was even more delighted.

Zhou Hu rubbed his hands: "That kid injured his fellow disciple and stole the secret method of Elder Ma, making Elder Ma furious, otherwise he wouldn't have been willing to take out four Blood-Transforming Pills as a reward."

Mentioning the Blood-Transforming Pills, the smile on Zhu Yue's face grew even more.

A Blood-Transforming Pill is of great benefit to cultivation, worth a thousand gold, and the key is that it's priceless.

If he gets the Blood-Transforming Pill, the progress to Eighth-Rank will be greatly increased, at least saving a year of bitter practice.

Han Qin opened his mouth: "Zhu Gan, you go up the mountain from the south, Tao Shidi Zhou, you from the north, Junior Sister Jiang, you from the west..."

"Head Catcher Liu, I have to trouble you to lead people to surround the ruined temple when we fight, to prevent him from escaping."

"Alright!"

Head Catcher Liu nodded, secretly praising that the Huaqing Sect disciples are different, thoughtful, and the deployment of the action is tight; that person will definitely not be able to fly.

Several people discussed countermeasures.

Li Rui had nothing to do, tied the sweat-blood treasure horses of the four Huaqing Sect people to a tree stump, and just as he turned around, he happened to collide with the gaze of that Huaqing Sect girl.

Along the way, the few people didn't avoid him when talking.

So he knew this Huaqing Sect girl was named Jiang Yan.

Jiang Yan didn't care about the details of the pursuit, but was observing Li Rui in secret.

Seeing that Li Rui had discovered her, Jiang Yan turned her head away.

Li Rui was even more puzzled.

What exactly did the other party see in him?

The next second—

A line of small characters appeared before his eyes.

【Obtained appreciation of a sect noble girl, achievement +2】

(End of chapter)