Secluded Cultivation

"Right, right, right, this is the spot. Raise it a little higher."

"You lot, clean that side again. Can't you see how much filth there is?"

"Send a few people over here..."

Throughout the entire morning, Zhang Mu's voice never stopped.

Under his direction, the entire residence took on a completely new look.

A conspicuous plaque had also been hung above the entrance, bearing two bold characters that danced like dragons and soared like phoenixes—Ling Estate.

Several days later.

In the inner courtyard of Ling Estate.

Ling Yun stood bare-chested, his knotted muscles exposed. Under the sunlight, they even gleamed with a metallic texture.

The long blade in his hand whistled through the air with tiger-like force. Countless leaves shaken loose from the trees had yet to approach him before being shredded by innumerable flashes of blade light.

The Tiger Blade Technique emphasized two words: ferocity and speed. Yet amid its wide, sweeping movements, it carried a trace of agility as well.

Gradually, Ling Yun's blade grew faster and faster. The explosive booms produced as it tore through the air merged into one, faintly resembling the roar of a ferocious tiger!

An illusory black tiger began to solidify behind him. Following the momentum of his blade, it pounced and shifted, lunged and sprang.

When Ling Yun finally cleaved out with his last strike, the black tiger merged completely into the blade, raising the power of that slash to another level!

Boom!

It was as though thunder had exploded in the air. A rockery several meters tall before him was split cleanly in two from its peak to its base.

The crack was as smooth as a mirror, enough to show the astonishing force of that strike.

"Huff!"

Ling Yun exhaled a breath of hot air, calming the surging blood and qi throughout his body.

Then he looked at the long blade in his hand, which had already broken into more than a dozen pieces, his gaze somewhat helpless.

With his current strength, ordinarily forged weapons simply could not withstand it.

And in one corner, discarded blades like this had already piled into a small mountain!

"Hehe, Master Ling, your cultivation is becoming more refined by the day!"

A fawning voice sounded from behind him.

Ling Yun did not even need to turn around to guess who it was. After all, there were not many people who could enter this place now.

As usual, he tossed the completely ruined blade in his hand into the corner, grabbed a bucket of water nearby and drained it in one gulp. Only then did he turn to look at Zhang Mu. After sizing him up from head to toe, he frowned and said,

"You fellow, how is it that after several days, your cultivation still seems not to have improved at all?"

Zhang Mu scratched his head at those words, not daring to argue back.

Ling Yun did not say anything further. He casually picked up a pastry and tossed it into his mouth, then asked flatly,

"Did you find any internal cultivation manuals?"

Zhang Mu first shook his head. Seeing a trace of dissatisfaction appear on Ling Yun's face, he hurriedly added, "Master Ling, although I didn't find an internal cultivation manual, I have some news that should interest you."

"Oh? Let's hear it." Ling Yun raised a brow, somewhat unconvinced.

Yet seeing how brimming with confidence Zhang Mu was, he could not help feeling a little more anticipation.

Zhang Mu put on a show of looking around before leaning in and saying mysteriously, "Master Ling, I've gotten news about a Spirit Weapon."

Yet Ling Yun was completely unmoved after hearing it. He even seemed somewhat disappointed.

"A Spirit Weapon? It must be another gimmick cooked up by those people. Or perhaps they picked up some broken Spirit Weapon from who knows where and are treating it like treasure."

He had not fallen for this sort of thing only once or twice these past few days.

However, Zhang Mu chuckled. "Master Ling, this time the news is absolutely real. All the factions in the city have been spreading word of it these past few days!"

"If that weren't the case, I wouldn't dare disturb you, Master Ling!"

"That is somewhat interesting."

A trace of surprise flashed through Ling Yun's eyes, and he sat up a little straighter.

That posture alone showed that he had taken some interest in the matter.

Zhang Mu immediately smiled smugly. He had originally wanted to deliberately keep him guessing, but upon seeing Ling Yun's icy gaze, he decisively told him everything he knew.

"An auction?" Ling Yun's eyes flickered, and he placed even more faith in the authenticity of the news.

Unless they wanted to smash their own signboard, those people would never dare publicize it recklessly.

"By the way, how many silver notes do we have left?"

Ling Yun suddenly recalled something and turned to ask Zhang Mu.

Since most matters were now arranged by this fellow, the silver notes were basically kept on him as well.

"Uh... probably a little over two thousand taels."

Zhang Mu counted on his fingers before giving an approximate figure.

The moment Ling Yun heard that, his head began to ache.

Their expenses during this period had indeed been rather great. Martial arts manuals, the residence, the everyday costs of training... all those bits and pieces added together had consumed more than half his savings.

Although over two thousand taels sounded like a lot, compared with the value of a Spirit Weapon, it paled into insignificance.

"How many days until the auction begins?"

"About three days." Zhang Mu quickly gave his answer.

Three days...

It seemed he had to find a way to get some money. Ling Yun tapped his fingers against the table, and a rough idea soon formed in his mind. As for how exactly to carry it out, he would need to consider it carefully.

"Alright, I'll think of something about the money. Keep an eye on the auction's progress. Inform me immediately if anything happens."

Zhang Mu nodded, then turned and left the courtyard.

After Zhang Mu left, Ling Yun sat where he was and pondered for a moment before opening the panel.

Name: Ling Yun

Martial Arts: Tiger Blade Technique—Fifth Layer, Vajra Body—Fifth Layer, Phantom Step—Fifth Layer

Modification Points: 3

Compared with several days ago, the panel had once again undergone enormous changes.

After all, he had not been idle these past days. During the day, he practiced martial arts in the courtyard; at night, he went out to hunt Evil Spirits. He had finally successfully modified his remaining two techniques to their limits.

Now that three ultimate techniques were upon him, Ling Yun faintly felt that the day he broke through to the Divine Passage realm and reached the next realm was not far away.

What he lacked now was merely an opportunity.

As for how he had managed to find so many Evil Spirits, the method was not difficult.

He only needed to watch the gates of the Demon Suppression Division, follow the Demon Suppression Envoys who had accepted missions, and once they found Evil Spirits, either openly seize them or secretly steal them. In just a few days, he had gained quite a haul.

However, after he had done this too many times, those Demon Suppression Envoys had wised up as well.

Not only had they begun acting in teams, they even deliberately laid ambushes, waiting specifically for him to appear.

In particular, there was one bare-chested fellow with a fierce gaze who called himself some captain or other. The moment they met, he invited Ling Yun to join the Demon Suppression Division.

But after careful consideration, Ling Yun still refused.

Although joining the Demon Suppression Division came with quite a few benefits, it also meant that from then on, he would have to act with his hands and feet tied, forced to obey others.

The other party was straightforward as well. The moment Ling Yun refused, he immediately turned hostile, and the two began fighting on the spot.

That fellow had the advantage of a higher realm, and his strength could overpower Ling Yun.

Ling Yun, meanwhile, was balanced in every aspect. He could fight and endure, and if things truly went badly, he could activate Phantom Step and flee.

In the end, neither side could do anything to the other, and it could barely be counted as a draw.

Who would have thought that afterward, this fellow would latch onto him? So long as Ling Yun showed himself, he would definitely see him within an hour.

Though Ling Yun was somewhat frustrated, without using Tiger's Might, he truly had no way to deal with him.

Moreover, Ling Yun vaguely sensed that the other party seemed to be hiding some sort of trump card that he had yet to use.

Ling Yun had no intention of completely offending the Demon Suppression Division either, so he avoided him whenever he could.

He had originally planned to lie low for the next few days, but if he wanted to gather enough silver for the auction this time, he might have no choice but to take some risks.

Ling Yun stroked his chin. He had already made up his mind.