The Price

After the villagers left, the spacious ancestral hall was left with only Zhou Yi, Chief Constable Li, Qu Yong, Old Qin, and the village chief.

The village chief looked at them, then said, "Including Zhou, there are three Vitality Realm martial artists here. Can't you really deal with that aberration?"

It seemed the village chief already knew he had advanced to the Vitality Realm. His master had probably told him last night.

Hearing his father's words, Qu Yong shook his head. "No. If it were one aberration, the three of us could still give it a try, but this is the Red and White Fiends."

After hearing Qu Yong, the village chief said, "All right, then. Can you hold them off for a while?"

Qu Yong nodded. "If we work with Old Qin, we can hold them back, but we won't last long."

The village chief turned his gaze to Old Qin. "Brother Qin, I'll have to trouble you again this time."

"It's only what I should do." Old Qin waved his hand.

"I already put you through a lot when I had you accompany this kid outside before, and now I have to trouble you again."

"If you hadn't saved me back then, who knew where I'd be buried now?" Old Qin said to the village chief with a bitter smile.

The village chief looked at Old Qin and said, "In the end, I'm still troubling you."

This time, Old Qin merely shook his head.

Seeing this, the village chief said nothing more and merely shifted his gaze to Li Zhengqing.

When Li Zhengqing saw the village chief looking his way, he quickly asked, "Village Chief, is there something you need me to handle?"

The village chief nodded and said to Li Zhengqing, "I can persuade the villagers, but for those wealthy merchants in the village, it would be better for your yamen to step in. My son has too foul a temper and isn't suited to show his face. It wouldn't do if things turned ugly. With the aberration at our doorstep, we can't afford any mishaps now."

Li Zhengqing held the old man before him in considerable respect. He immediately patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, Village Chief. I'll personally speak with them about this."

Only after receiving Li Zhengqing's promise did the village chief nod in relief. Finally, he turned his gaze to Zhou Yi.

"Zhou, I'll have to trouble you this time as well."

"It's only what I should do." Zhou Yi shook his head.

The village chief nodded approvingly, then said to everyone, "I'll go get busy first."

After the village chief left, Li Zhengqing also said, "The sooner this is handled, the better. I'll go visit those wealthy merchants first."

Seeing that only Old Qin and his master remained in the ancestral hall, Zhou Yi, whose stomach was full of questions, spoke up. "Master, what is the price of asking Luoshi City for help?"

Qu Yong held up five fingers to Zhou Yi.

Zhou Yi looked at them. "Five thousand taels?"

"Fifty thousand taels." Qu Yong said painfully.

Zhou Yi clicked his tongue at the mention of fifty thousand taels. His monthly salary was only ten taels of silver. Fifty thousand taels... After doing the math in his heart, Zhou Yi realized it would take him nearly four hundred years to earn that much. No wonder his master looked so pained. Back when he had borrowed even one tael of silver from him, his master had been distressed beyond measure.

Qu Yong continued, "Forget about that for now. I didn't have time to tell you about the path beyond the Vitality Realm last night, so I'll tell you now."

Zhou Yi nodded. The two sat down on chairs to one side, while Old Qin watched silently nearby.

With a nostalgic look in his eyes, Qu Yong said, "Only upon entering the Vitality Realm can one be said to have stepped through the gate of martial cultivation. One's very level of life changes as well. The Vitality Realm advances differently from the Strength Channeling Realm."

Zhou Yi suddenly thought of the ten percent displayed after his race on the panel. Did that number represent the change in his level of life?

Zhou Yi pondered silently while continuing to listen to Qu Yong.

"In the Strength Channeling Realm, all you need is for your body to produce qi and blood. Thus, even someone who has just entered the Strength Channeling Realm can advance to the Vitality Realm. But that is far too difficult, and afterward, it is nearly impossible to advance to a higher level. Therefore, those with poor talent for martial arts usually temper their bodies for a while before advancing. Even so, they cannot compare to those who advance only after tempering their bodies to the utmost limit."

"To temper your body to its utmost limit and advance to the Vitality Realm within two months—you are the most gifted seedling I have ever seen. Even the so-called geniuses of those great Lineages cannot compare to you. You must know that they have been using medicinal herbs to temper their bodies since childhood, while you had never practiced martial arts before."

Qu Yong knew he had gone off topic. He glanced at Zhou Yi, and seeing that Zhou Yi had not noticed, continued, "The method of advancing through the Vitality Realm is different. First comes the cultivation method. If you want the road ahead to become smoother, you must choose a cultivation method suited to yourself. Moreover, advancing through the Vitality Realm usually requires natural treasures that match the cultivation method."

At this point, Qu Yong sighed deeply to Zhou Yi. "Qingzhu Village is too small. I originally thought you would need at least several more years before advancing to the Vitality Realm. By then, I would have found a way to help you settle the matter of cultivation arts and natural treasures."

"Qingzhu Village is holding you back now. As your master, I can't even provide you with a Vitality Realm cultivation art. Once the Red and White Fiends are dealt with, go to Luoshi City. Your master still has a friend in the Provincial Governor's Office there. He will look after you."

"Master, I..." Zhou Yi wanted to say something, but did not know how to begin.

Qu Yong saw what was in Zhou Yi's heart and said, "Go. Just don't forget to come back and see us when you have time."

Zhou Yi said solemnly to Qu Yong, "You will always be my master."

Hearing those words, Qu Yong revealed a gratified smile. Then he said to Zhou Yi, "That is enough. All right, next I'll explain the differences between cultivation arts."

After a pause, Qu Yong said, "The Body Refining Technique you cultivate, along with your saber art and movement art, are all Mortal Grade cultivation arts."

"Mortal Grade?" Zhou Yi asked in confusion.

"That's right, Mortal Grade. After reaching the Vitality Realm, it isn't that Mortal Grade cultivation arts cannot be used, but they can no longer keep up with the demands of your realm. Mortal Grade martial arts become sluggish in your hands, preventing you from displaying the strength that someone in the Vitality Realm ought to possess."

Zhou Yi understood a little. His cultivation realm was like a bucket, while cultivation arts were like pipes drawing water from that bucket. Mortal Grade cultivation arts drew it far too slowly.

Thinking of this, Zhou Yi asked Qu Yong, "Then, Master, what martial arts lie above the Mortal Grade?"

Qu Yong explained, "Above Mortal Grade are Spirit Grade and divine abilities. All martial arts at Spirit Grade and above are controlled by the Lineages and the imperial court. Your master does possess one Spirit Grade martial art, but it does not suit you, nor can I teach it to you. When learning Spirit Grade martial arts, one is required to swear an oath. If that oath is violated, the imperial court will discover it. When that time comes, not only will disaster befall you, but it will also spread to those close to you."

Zhou Yi did not care much about this. At worst, he could exchange for one after joining the Provincial Governor's Office in the future. Instead, he was interested in what kind of Spiritual Skill his master had learned, and he was also curious about divine abilities. Thus, he asked, "Master, what Spiritual Skill did you learn? And what exactly are divine abilities?"

Seeing that Zhou Yi showed no dejection at being unable to learn a Spirit Grade martial art, Qu Yong continued, "The only Spiritual Skill I learned is a spear art—the Spirit Severing Spear. As for divine abilities, I once personally saw a great man use one. At that time, heaven and earth changed color. With a single palm strike, a small mountain was reduced to flying ash beneath that great man's hand."

Hearing Qu Yong describe the might of divine abilities, Zhou Yi could not help but reveal a look of longing.

After imparting all the experience he knew to Zhou Yi, Qu Yong could not help but worry once more over the Red and White Fiends.

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