Chapter 103: Entering the Sect Assessment (Part Two)

In the process of wielding the weapon, his body was also growing familiar with it, even absorbing the enhancements from the wielding effect.

Inside the room, Li Mou lightly danced with the hammer weapon; within the hammer technique, there were already shadows of the Green Serpent Spear and Tiger Roar Blade, yet what he executed was the Mad Lion Blade Technique.

Moreover, as the heavy weapon swung, it landed without a sound—this was wielding the heavy as if it were light.

"Huu!"

"Hah!"

Xu Tui executed the Mad Lion Blade Technique; beneath Li Mou's feet, he seemed to move yet did not move, like a spirit ape flinging its arm, a fierce tiger in a low stance; various breathing methods switched one after another, regulating qi, blood, and internal force.

Beyond the Liu Hu Xi Fa, he had also learned six other different breathing methods.

"Different breathing methods correspond to their own qi and blood circulation, so the breathing method for the Soldier's Path Combat Killing Hammer should correspond to the great qi and blood circulation…"

"What about other Cheng Wu Gong? Is there any difference in the breathing methods?"

The hammer weapon danced lightly; the soreness and itchiness gradually spread, and what the Mad Lion Root Bone Diagram altered was from the neck to the shoulders and back…

"The Mad Lion Blade Technique is indeed far inferior compared to Bai Yuan's Hammer; the pain of root bone alteration is much reduced, and the speed is also much faster…"

The soreness, itchiness, and pain had decreased, not because his endurance had risen—Li Mou was very certain of this.

Though the soreness and stiffness in his neck were certainly uncomfortable, compared to full-body cramping, it was still far better.

"If it's all at this speed, as long as I don't stop for a day, forty-plus days… should be enough to gather all nine forms, right?"

……

Li Mou was unable to go into closed-door cultivation.

The next day, Liu Zheng and others had already come to consult with him, preparing to rent a small courtyard; the rent was three qian per day, and the others were already finding it somewhat hard to bear.

Having not slept all night, Li Mou did not feel weary either; he went with Liu Zheng and the others to find a secluded three-courtyard residence, and at a monthly rent of eight taels, rented it for two months; split among eighteen people, it was much more cost-effective than the inn.

Li Mou, meanwhile, rented a single-courtyard small residence next door at a price of one tael and six qian; with several thousand taels of silver on his person, he did not wish to treat himself too poorly.

The main reason was that he truly intended to go into closed-door cultivation.

Over the next ten-plus days, Shao Shao Fangbai did not come to host another banquet; Li Mou was glad of the peace, practicing martial arts every day during the day, and going out at noon to find a roadside eatery for a meal,

sometimes together with Liu Zheng, sometimes dragging along Yue Yue Yunjin and Wu Ming.

Closed-door cultivation did not mean shutting oneself indoors; moreover, the pain of root bone alteration also needed to be eased—otherwise, it would harm both body and mind.

"Number one on the Divine Weapon Ranking of Zhedu Fucheng, the Five-Colored Lingxu Blade, a top-grade famed weapon, wielded by the Valley Master of the Divine Weapon Valley, Lord Master Gongyang Yu—it is the finest among blades!"

"…The Hundred-Wing Heavenly Cicada Sword, nineteenth on the Divine Weapon Ranking, a superior famed weapon, wielded by Elder Kuyue, the Sword Head of the Divine Weapon Valley…"

"The Wind Thunder Ruyi Jade Pestle, twenty-third on the Divine Weapon Ranking, a superior famed weapon, wielded by Elder Han Han Chuijun, the Hammer Head of the Divine Weapon Valley…"

……

Zhedu Fucheng was extremely vast; for anywhere slightly farther, one had to ride in a sedan chair or a horse carriage, or even a human-pulled two-wheeled cart.

On a horse carriage, Li Mou flipped through the Divine Weapon Ranking; over these past days, he had leafed through it countless times, and had even sought out rankings from previous years.

Compared to other rankings, this volume of the Divine Weapon Ranking saw very little change; for over a hundred years, the Five-Colored Lingxu Blade had firmly held the top spot, and the positions of the remaining thirteen top-grade famed weapons had mostly remained unchanged.

"The entire Zhedu Fucheng actually has only fourteen top-grade famed weapons, and moreover, half of them have either been broken before or vanished long ago…"

Li Mou murmured to himself.

The weapons of the Divine Weapon Valley were renowned throughout the world, and martial artists traveled ten thousand li to seek them, yet top-grade famed weapons remained exceedingly few.

Instead, superior famed weapons and ordinary famed weapons were more numerous.

The two hundred and seventy-three divine weapons on the ranking were all superior famed weapons and above; only three ordinary famed weapons were on the list, and those had a great deal to do with their owners.

"There are already this many on the surface; in the shadows, there must surely be more—perhaps some divine weapon is hidden away…"

Li Mou's mind once again recalled that wisp of profound-colored light.

An eleventh-tier weapon was something beyond imagination; in all the books he had gathered over these days, he had not seen a single word about it, and even in storytelling scripts and tales, it had never appeared…

"The Rift Sea Mysterious Whale Hammer…"

The horse carriage slowly meandered through the various main streets; Li Mou's thoughts drifted, yet he also kept his attention on both sides of the street at all times.

After the Weapon Register advanced to the fourth tier, only when he consciously sensed did light surge from weapons within ten meters; at this moment, a great swathe of light was shifting before his eyes.

Unfortunately, most were first-tier weapons—in other words, ordinary sharp blades.

"Even in Fucheng, weapons above superior sharp blades are very rare; most people will not purchase such precious weapons…"

Li Mou was not surprised.

Weapons required maintenance; the better the weapon, the more carefully it had to be maintained.

Just as Zhang Ben had once said, the martial artists Li Mou had seen over these days, apart from their weapons, mostly carried a small case.

Silk cloth, whetstones, medicinal pills, and so on—these were necessities for wandering the jianghu, and the silk cloth and whetstones were prepared precisely for maintaining weapons.

Those who were particular would also bring various 'oils' sold at weapon shops; depending on the weapon, these were divided into 'blade oil,' 'sword oil,' and the like.

Of course, those even more particular, like Shao Shao Fangbai, even had several sword-bearing attendants, specifically responsible for cleaning and maintaining the sword after drawing it.

"Hammers are an exception, hmm, wolf-fang clubs don't need it either—stained with blood, they look even more brutal…"

A sidelong glance from Li Mou, and he once again spotted that fierce-tiger monk Zou Kui.

The wolf-fang club slung over his shoulder was stained with blood, making one's heart pound at the sight.

"Hmm?"

Zou Kui keenly detected someone spying on him and glared viciously toward the carriage; before he could even curse, he saw Li Mou lifting the curtain to greet him.

His face stiffened, and on his rough and wild face, he forced out an ugly smile: "…So it's Brother Li, what a coincidence to meet again?"

The coachman timely halted the carriage, looked at the wolf-fang club, and wore an expression of pounding heart.

"Fucheng is this big, yet Li Mou steps out and immediately runs into Hero Zou—what fate!"

Li Mou stepped down from the carriage; he had been preparing to find a local tough to ask about some matters, and seeing Zou Kui so wary of him, naturally felt he was a very good candidate.

Fate my ass!

Zou Kui cursed inwardly; he truly did not want to have anything to do with any person or matter connected to Han Han Chuijun, and bracing himself, forced a laugh:

"Yes, what a coincidence… well, you know, I, Zou, still have important matters to attend to. See you later, Brother Li!"

Before he finished speaking, Zou Kui turned and walked away, but the moment he turned, his face twitched:

"Sha, Brother Sha?"

Looking at Sha Sha Pingying, who was shouldering a mixed-iron staff, Zou Kui only felt his scalp go a little numb.

"Haha, just got back to Huicheng and ran into Brother Zou. What did I say before? The two of us are fated!"

Sha Sha Pingying wore a face full of smiles.

"…Yes, yes."

Zou Kui's smile stiffened even more.

"This time the mountain gate opens wide. With Brother Zou's Wu Gong, you'll surely be able to join the Divine Guard Army. When that happens, we'll be fellow disciples!"

Sha Sha Pingying patted this giant of a man, who was a head taller than him, and smiled as he looked toward Li Yuan:

"Junior Brother Li, the sect had an assignment some days ago, I just got back. Don't blame your senior brother for the neglect!"

"Whatever are you saying, Senior Brother?"

Li Yuan cupped his hands in salute.

After the two exchanged a few words, Zou Kui had already left at a quick pace, as if fleeing from a plague god.

"This Zou Kui?"

Li Yuan was somewhat curious. This giant of a man was shouldering a famed-grade wolf-tooth club, so his strength was surely not to be underestimated, but this behavior was a bit…

"Junior Brother, you must not underestimate this Zou Kui. This man long ago achieved Great Completion of Internal Strength, and with his innate divine strength, if not for his slightly lacking talent, he would have broken through to Yi Xing long ago."

Sha Sha Pingying pulled Li Yuan along, found a tavern to sit down at, ordered a pot of wine, and only then began to talk about Zou Kui:

"This Fierce Tiger was quite ferocious and domineering in his earlier years. The villains he captured and killed were all reduced to a pulp of flesh and bone. Later, he ran into Elder Han, and after that, whenever he saw disciples of our Divine Weapon Valley, his legs would shake with fear…"

"So that's how it is."

Li Yuan poured him wine and asked him about some matters.

Sha Sha Pingying was from Fucheng and had joined the inner sect of Divine Weapon Valley since childhood. He knew the affairs in and around Fucheng in great detail. Li Yuan asked one question, and he talked for nearly half a shichen.

From the six great families of Fucheng, the major and minor sects, all the way to the large and small gangs.

"The Zhao family? The Zhao family has been in Fucheng for several hundred years. Every generation has had disciples who joined Divine Weapon Valley. Though they've declined in recent years, their power is still quite considerable."

Sha Sha Pingying's expression shifted slightly:

"The ancestor of this Zhao family was originally just a night-soil collector. His Wu Gong was ordinary, but his methods were quite remarkable. He gathered the night-soil collectors from every district of the city together, and in just forty short years, bought up two streets of 'Cloud Phoenix Ward,' over three hundred courtyards…"

"The Zhao family also began to prosper from him."

"A dung hegemon?"

Li Yuan thought of Liang Liang Ashui. The latter had set his sights on this big business the moment he entered the city, showing excellent judgment.

"A dung hegemon? Quite apt, actually."

Sha Sha Pingying laughed: "Why does Junior Brother ask about this? Have they sent someone to provoke you?"

"Just curious."

Li Yuan shook his head.

In the past few days, he had indeed inquired. After the news of Cao Yan's death reached Fucheng, that very day, the shop he had bought at great cost had already taken the surname Zhao.

That faint hostility from Zhao Zhao Yunsheng was probably also because of this.

"The Zhao family's power is not small, but compared to Elder Han, they count for nothing."

Sha Sha Pingying didn't pay it much mind either.

Divine Weapon Valley dominates Rushan. What six great families or eight major gangs—they're all just birds foraging in the forest.

The two talked for a long time and drank several pots of wine. Only then did Sha Sha Pingying rise to take his leave. Li Yuan, with great perceptiveness, handed over a five-hundred-tael banknote.

Tongda Money House was one of Divine Weapon Valley's businesses, and naturally accepted within Zhe Long Prefecture.

Taking the banknote, Sha Sha Pingying finally nodded in satisfaction:

"If Junior Brother has matters, feel free to come find me."

"Thank you, Senior Brother."

Li Yuan chased after him a few steps and reminded him:

"Senior Brother, you forgot to tell me where you live…"

"Oh, oh~"

Sha Sha Pingying slapped his forehead, left his address, and only then waved and departed.

Li Yuan cupped his hands in salute, watching him leave, and only then settled the bill:

"Doing business with Heroine Fang is still more comfortable…"

……

Riding out of the city alone, not far out, Sha Sha Pingying had already stopped.

By the Grand Canal, Han Han Chuijun sat on a large rock holding a rod and fishing. Not far off, under a tree, Fang Fang Yunxiu sat cross-legged, her complexion somewhat pale.

"Elder Han, Senior Sister Fang."

Sha Sha Pingying dismounted and strode over: "Junior Brother Li arrived in the city over ten days ago. He's now rented a small courtyard, practicing his Wu Gong day and night, rarely going out."

"He knows how to behave."

Han Han Chuijun nodded, not worried about Li Yuan.

Not yet eighteen years old, with one Wu Gong already at Great Completion, joining the inner sect was naturally no problem at all.

"I heard those several routes of Talent-Seeking Envoys also found quite a few good seedlings, as well as people like Shao Shao Fangbai, Gan Wu, Tong Tong Jincheng, and others. This time when the mountain gate opens, it will probably be very lively."

Sha Sha Pingying glanced at Fang Fang Yunxiu under the tree, somewhat worried.

"In previous years, the valley was too cautious in taking disciples and missed quite a few talented ones. This time, I expect we'll be able to take in quite a few."

Han Han Chuijun narrowed his eyes slightly, gazing at the river's surface.

In previous years, the Divine Weapon Valley only took in disciples around eight years old with superior root bones, and entry required a hefty sum of silver; many disciples from poor families missed their chance.

But those people were still around, only delayed a little. Now that this restriction was gone, talents naturally came in a steady stream.

Sha Sha Pingying came to the riverbank, watching the merchant ships passing by:

"This time there are a full thirty-six inner-disciple slots. Junior Brother Li should rank in the middle-to-lower tier, which isn't bad. His talent is excellent—he may well rise to the top later."

"Mm."

Han Han Chuijun lifted his fishing rod and flicked up a fish: "Spirit fish are hard to catch. What about Liang Liang Ashui? Has he arrived?"

"Liang Liang Ashui?"

Sha Sha Pingying scratched his head: "He should have, should have arrived?"

"Half a month ago, Gao Liu's Changyuan Escort Agency escorted over twenty people here, and Liang Liang Ashui was among them."

Fang Fang Yunxiu stood up, a little color returning to her face.

"Although that child's talent isn't as good as Li Yuan's, his fishing skills aren't bad. Who knows, he might help this old man catch that Red Dragon Fish King!"

Han Han Chuijun reeled in his rod and turned around:

"The Qianjun Cave's 'Blood-Melting Palm' is quite vicious. Although this old man acted to drive out the palm force, for the next three months I cannot engage in martial combat."

"This disciple understands."

Fang Fang Yunxiu bowed in response. Compared to half a year ago, she had become much more composed.

"First the Xieshen Sect, then the Zhenwu Hall, and now even Qianjun Cave has come to join the fun!"

Sha Sha Pingying cast a concerned glance at Fang Fang Yunxiu, his expression grave: "Elder Han, this matter must be reported to the Valley Master…"

"The mountain gate has not opened; the Valley Master will not come out of seclusion."

Picking up his fish basket, Han Han Chuijun gave instructions:

"This opening of the mountain gate has shaken all the prefectures; visitors are gathering in droves, and among them are those with ulterior motives. For these next days, stay in the city for now and lend a hand to the Surveillance Hall."

"This disciple understands."

Sha Sha Pingying bowed and accepted the order.

"Enough. This old man is heading back to the valley. I hear some people have quite a few complaints about me. Heh heh…"

Han Han Chuijun drifted away into the distance.

Listening to his voice, both Sha Sha Pingying and Fang Fang Yunxiu wore worried expressions. This return to Huishan was bound to cause a great commotion.

……

……

As the day of the Divine Weapon Valley's mountain-gate opening drew closer, Fucheng of Zhelong grew increasingly lively. Many inns had already run out of rooms, and rentable courtyards had long been snapped up.

By the third month, quite a few people were even camping outside the city and at the foot of the mountain, waiting for the gates to swing wide open.

Yue Yue Yunjin, Wu Ming, and the others felt the pressure. They had shut themselves indoors days ago, training hard in martial arts. Even Liu Zheng grew nervous, dragging Wang Wang Peiyao and the others into sparring every day to hone their Wu Gong.

At night, in the small courtyard.

"Hoo!"

"Hah!"

A gentle breeze drifted by. Li Yuan stood in a large vat filled with coarse iron sand, constantly adjusting his breathing. Once his mind settled, he swallowed three top-grade Origin-Supplementing Pills in one go.

Whoo!

With pills worth over a hundred taels of silver in his belly, Li Yuan immediately felt his whole body burning. He forced himself to hold the Soldier Body stance, churning the iron sand to scour his body.

After more than forty days of unceasing pill-taking and bitter endurance, his root bones had undergone two more transformations. The final transformation forming the Nine Forms neared completion, and the Swimming Fish Steps were also reaching their conclusion.