Chapter 13: Great Progress in Cultivation, Nine Yang Small Success

Among the various divine arts in Jin-style martial arts, the Nine Yang Divine Art can be considered top-tier.

Once mastered, one's Internal Energy becomes endless and inexhaustible; it also possesses the effects of automatic body protection, automatic counter-attacks, and immunity to all poisons, making it a divine art essential for both home and travel.

Such a divine art, of course, has quite a high threshold for entry.

Do not be fooled by the fact that the original practitioner of the Nine Yang Divine Art, Master Jueyuan, discovered it in the Lengjia Jing and successfully cultivated it to a profound level while in a state of ignorance.

Later, when Zhang Wuji obtained the Nine Yang Divine Art in the Kunlun Mountains, he also cultivated it alone in the mountains for many years, gradually bringing the divine art to the verge of completion.

It looks easy, but in reality, the threshold is quite high.

Master Jueyuan was a high monk of the Shaolin Temple; he was no stranger to the various intricacies of martial arts and also had deep attainments in ancient texts.

He could understand and practice it; Zhang Wuji was also born into a martial arts family and, from a young age on Binghuo Dao, had the guidance of the Wudang Five Heroes' Zhang Cuishan, the demonic cult enchantress Yin Susu, and the Golden-Haired Lion King, one of the Four Great Guardian Kings of the Ming Cult.

Later, after leaving Binghuo Dao and arriving at Wudang Mountain, he had the guidance of six of the Wudang Seven, and even Zhang Sanfeng often infused Internal Energy into his body to teach him martial arts cultivation.

Regarding meridians, acupoints, ancient texts, and martial arts cultivation, Zhang Wuji had been immersed in them since childhood, and his knowledge in this area exceeded that of the vast majority of people in the martial arts world.

Therefore, he could practice a supreme divine art immediately upon receiving it, but Zhang Xuan could not.

However, Zhang Sanfeng's way of conducting himself and doing things is truly impressive, practically flawless.

Having long known Zhang Xuan's state, he not only sent a Flat Peach but also thoughtfully provided him with a copy of the Nine Yang Divine Art with annotations.

"Sigh, this is what a prestigious sect is like. Interacting with such a Grandmaster figure truly makes one feel happy and at ease!"

Zhang Xuan sighed sincerely; at this moment, he had already browsed through the Nine Yang Divine Art completely.

Zhang Sanfeng's explanations were profound yet simple, moving from the easy to the complex, and were overall quite vivid.

With Zhang Sanfeng's annotations, his understanding of the Nine Yang Divine Art had reached a higher level, and there was no longer much of a problem in switching from Wudang Internal Energy to the Nine Yang Divine Art.

Wudang Internal Energy itself is upright and peaceful, used for building a foundation; it is the heart method of the orthodox Profound Gate, so there would not be too many problems regardless of switching to any other divine art.

After echoing it in his mind one more time and confirming there were no omissions, Zhang Xuan held his breath, focused his mind, and assumed the five-hearts-facing-the-sky posture.

Following the circulation route in the Nine Yang Divine Art, he slowly mobilized the True Qi within his body.

At first, it was somewhat obscure, and the movement was a bit unsmooth.

He nearly made mistakes several times when changing routes; after all, Zhang Xuan had only been practicing internal energy for a short time, a mere half a month or so.

There was much unfamiliarity when changing techniques, but fortunately, Wudang Internal Energy is upright and peaceful, so even if there were errors in the circulation route, it was nothing more than a slight disruption of Qi.

After resting for a short while, he could recover as before without any impact; coupled with the Nine Yang Divine Art annotated by Zhang Sanfeng, Zhang Xuan's understanding of the Nine Yang Divine Art was very thorough, and after a few mistakes, he gradually got on the right track.

By the time the conversion was completely successful, Zhang Xuan looked out; amidst the flickering neon lights, he had unknowingly practiced for an entire afternoon, but fortunately, he had finally succeeded.

"Truly, having an elder in the house is like having a treasure!"

Thinking of the several mistakes during the afternoon's practice, Zhang Xuan could not help but feel even more grateful to Zhang Sanfeng.

This Grandmaster of martial arts had a grasp of cultivation that was truly subtle to the extreme; the cultivation advice he gave had a very good effect on Zhang Xuan, allowing him to achieve great success after several such mistakes.

Having succeeded in his cultivation, Zhang Xuan was not in a rush; instead, after trying a few times and confirming there were no errors, he took out the Kunlun Flat Peach that Zhang Sanfeng had sent.

In the kitchen, he carefully cut the Flat Peach into several slices, even collecting the peach juice that flowed out from the inside, and Zhang Xuan first took a small taste.

The Flat Peach was plump and juicy, even a bit overripe; as it entered his mouth, first came a fragrant sweetness, followed immediately by a gentle Essence.

Zhang Xuan did not dare to be negligent; he sat cross-legged on the floor and practiced using the essential techniques of the Nine Yang Divine Art.

The Essence rose from the dantian and coursed through his entire body; as it traveled through the meridians, the Essence that was originally about to dissipate was gathered bit by bit, helping to push the Nine Yang Divine Art forward continuously.

It took a full quarter of an hour for the Essence of this mouthful of Flat Peach juice to be completely refined; despite having practiced for quite some time, Zhang Xuan did not feel tired, but instead felt refreshed and clear-headed.

With the Essence circulating within his body, he became increasingly spirited, and even the skin on his body became better than before, possessing a moist, lustrous sheen.

When Zhang Xuan looked in the mirror, he felt that his own face seemed to have been beautified by one of the four great Asian sorceries—photo editing; even the pores all over his body were barely visible, and the whole person appeared very refined.

His lips were red, his teeth were white, and he had quite a distinguished air.

Joyful in his heart, Zhang Xuan felt even more that this Flat Peach was a good thing.

Although he hadn't eaten dinner, he didn't feel hungry; he ate the Flat Peach in small bites, refining the Essence bit by bit.

By the time the refining was complete, it was already near midnight.

Usually, at this time, Zhang Xuan would have already rested, but now he was still full of spirit, without the slightest feeling of fatigue.

He only felt that there was an endless supply of Essence circulating within his body; he didn't even need to spend much energy or effort to control it, as the relevant Internal Energy would circulate according to a fixed flow.

This was already the entry level of the Nine Yang Divine Art, and he was gradually gaining a foothold.

Moreover, looking out at the neon lights outside the house, Zhang Xuan discovered that his eyesight was much better than before.

His ears were also more sensitive than before; he could instantly identify the direction of the wild cat's meowing outside.

In the dark of night, his eyes even shone slightly.

Attempting to walk around the room, when he applied his Internal Energy, a light tap of his toes sent him jumping from one side of the living room to the other, a distance of over a zhang.

Furthermore, his entire movement was light and airy, as if he hadn't exerted any force.

"Internal Energy is truly a good thing!"

Zhang Xuan could not help but sigh with emotion.

Not only had the five senses of his body become stronger, but some of the minor ailments of his body, such as the slight discomfort in his neck caused by years of bending over to play on his Mobile Phone and look at the computer, had also disappeared.

His body as a whole seemed tighter than before, and his slightly chubby little belly had also shrunk a bit.

Moreover, through his understanding of the Nine Yang Divine Art and the Wudang Basic Internal Gong, Zhang Xuan also knew that it wouldn't be long before his physical state would be even better.

Internal energy is essentially Refining Essence into Qi; the excess Essence in the body is refined into Internal Energy, so the excess fat and the like would disappear before long.

The physique that many people pursue—looking thin in clothes and having muscle when undressed—would be achievable before long.

There had already been some performance when practicing Wudang Basic Internal Gong before, and now that he had entered the Nine Yang Divine Art, it was even more obvious.

Zhang Xuan estimated for himself; according to the standards in the Nine Yang Divine Art and the Wudang Basic Internal Gong, his current Internal Energy was already over a year's worth.

It could be said to be quite good; he had easily crossed a very large threshold.

It was a pity that after looking at the standard set for him by the Chat Group, he was still at Tier 1.

By the Chat Group's standards, his level of enhancement was not much different from before.

Zhang Xuan did not feel dejected or disappointed; in fact, his changes had already been significant.

Judging by his own senses, with his current agility—sharp eyes, quick hands, and great strength—three or five ordinary strong men could not even get close to him.

This was only because he was not skilled in attacking and lacked corresponding offensive methods.

If he were to master some weapons and confront others head-on, in his current state, as long as he had Internal Energy, fighting five people at once would not be difficult.

He tried inviting the person "I Slept for Ten Thousand Years" to join the Chat Group, but the Chat Group still gave a cold response.

"Strength insufficient, unable to invite."

Zhang Xuan had a slight headache; his cultivation speed was very fast, and he could sense that as the Nine Yang Divine Art progressed further, his cultivation speed had not slowed down, but was actually faster than before.

After mastering the basics, the Nine Yang Divine Art could also extract Essence from between Heaven and Earth; in the era where Zhang Sanfeng lived, the Heaven and Earth Essence was relatively thin and unsuitable for cultivation.

In the Zhetian Universe where Zhang Xuan lived, the Heaven and Earth Essence was likewise thin and unsuitable for cultivation.

But the concept of "thin" for the two was not the same.

For Zhang Xuan, "thin" meant it was difficult for figures at the Saint level to appear, that is, figures capable of traversing between galaxies and traveling across the starry sky.

For Zhang Sanfeng, "thin" meant it was truly thin.

"Under normal conditions, I wouldn't even need two years to cultivate the Nine Yang Divine Art to Great Completion, allowing my Internal Energy to become endless, but it's a pity it's still too slow."

After an excited attempt, Zhang Xuan could not help but sigh again.

Being able to cultivate the Nine Yang Divine Art to Great Completion in two years was already a shocking level.

Zhang Sanfeng would be silent upon hearing this, and Zhang Wuji would be speechless.

But it was still not enough; the Chat Group only gave him fifteen days.

"Sigh, forget it. If it's meant to be, it's my fate; if I can't get it, there's nothing I can do."

He practiced until the early morning, then excitedly performed various tests, and when he checked the time, it was already three in the morning.

Even with his success in Internal Energy, after the excitement and exertion, Zhang Xuan felt somewhat exhausted.

There were still many thoughts in his mind, but Zhang Xuan still took the initiative to return to his room to rest; no matter how many things there were, he would deal with them tomorrow.

At eight in the morning, his long-standing biological clock woke Zhang Xuan from his deep sleep; although he had not slept long last night, he felt no fatigue and was still very energetic.

After sleeping for the night, he felt that the Internal Energy in his body had increased again, and his state was even better than before.

The End of Dharma Era of the Zhetian Universe was far better than the End of Dharma Era of the world where Zhang Sanfeng lived.

Zhang Xuan thought about the Kunlun Flat Peach pit left over from yesterday and did not throw it away, instead going out to buy a flowerpot and some soil.

He planted the peach pit, which was the size of a ping-pong ball, into it and watered it.

The reason Zhang Xuan woke up so early was not just for this, but because he was waiting for a key event to happen.

Today was also the hundredth birthday of Zhang Sanfeng.

With the Six Great Sects all ascending Wudang Mountain, Zhang Xuan wanted to see how Zhang Sanfeng, who already knew what was about to happen, would respond.

(End of this chapter)