Azure Yuan Art

The next morning, just as the sky was barely light, Lin Changqiang dragged a reluctant Lin Dong to find Lin Zhentian and showed off their Earthly Yuan Stage cultivation, leaving Lin Zhentian staring at them wide-eyed, his mouth trembling nonstop.

It wasn't that Lin Changqiang enjoyed showing off in front of others, but now that he could finally cultivate techniques, he had no desire to keep scraping by on handouts. Getting it early meant cultivating early—wasn't that a no-brainer?

Though he didn't know why, in the original story, Lin Dong never mentioned breaking through to the Earthly Yuan Stage to anyone, nor did he immediately come asking for the Azure Yuan Art. It probably boiled down to the four big words: showing off and slapping faces. So Lin Changqiang had no qualms about throwing Lin Dong under the bus.

Until the two of them rushed out of the back courtyard carrying an ancient yellow book, Lin Zhentian was still chuckling away, his grin so unsettling it made anyone who saw it shudder.

The Lin Family's back mountain, shrouded in a thin mist, welcomed its old friend once again.

On a clearing in the dense forest, Lin Changqiang grandly tossed the Azure Yuan Art into Lin Dong's arms with a flourish: "Ladies first, Lin Dong. Take a look, don't be polite with me."

But to his surprise, Lin Dong didn't react at all this time. He just ignored him and flipped open the Azure Yuan Art, looking like he was seriously studying it, which instead threw Lin Changqiang off.

So-called martial arts techniques, at their core, were just a method to guide and refine Yuan Power. For example, the Lin Family's "Azure Yuan Art" could open up four meridians. Of course, with Lin Dong's Ancestral Stone perfecting it, that number had become seven.

These seven meridians reached straight to the skin. When cultivating, as long as one activated the technique, they could directly absorb Yuan Power from heaven and earth through these meridians. The speed was obviously much faster than relying solely on breathing.

It was said that most top-tier techniques could open dozens of meridians. Some even more miraculous techniques could directly form an endless vortex of energy within the body using a special method. At that point, even if you weren't in a cultivating state, those vortexes would continuously draw Yuan Power from heaven and earth to temper the body and fill the Dantian.

"Dong, congratulations to the host for achieving the achievement: First Contact with Yuan Power Cultivation Technique. Reward: Two Lottery Draw Opportunities."

Looking at the seven Lottery Draw Counts displayed in the info, Lin Changqiang hesitated. He wondered whether he should hoard them like he did when playing games before, or be the type to draw as soon as he got them.

"System, do you have any events like ten consecutive draws giving a free Magic Guan Yu, or ten consecutive draws guaranteeing an epic item?"

"Dong, reply to host: Single draw and ten consecutive draws have no difference."

"Tch, fine, won't even give me a reason to hoard." Lin Changqiang took a deep breath and rubbed his face. "System, use all Lottery Draw Opportunities!"

Thinking it over, every time he broke through a major realm, he'd get a few Lottery Draw Opportunities, plus various quest and achievement rewards. Lottery Draw Opportunities weren't that hard to come by. Besides, after the Hunt ended, the Lei Family was going to stir up trouble, so it was better to strengthen himself first.

"Dong, seven Lottery Draw Opportunities used successfully. Congratulations to the host for obtaining:

One Little Trumpet, Two Intimacy Roses, Two Double Experience Cards, One Double Gold Coin Card, Nuwa's Third Skill - Command: Teleport."

"Command: Teleport: Consumes Yuan Power to condense a circular formation with a diameter of five meters beneath the feet. After five seconds, it will teleport any person or object designated by the host within the formation to a specified location.

If the location is outside the field of vision, someone within the formation must have been to that place before. If within the field of vision, there is no restriction."

Lin Changqiang's eyes lit up. At that moment, he felt like nowhere in the world was out of reach.

"Lin Dong, if you ever get into trouble out there, just come back to me. I've got your back, no worries!" Lin Changqiang cheerfully patted Lin Dong on the shoulder, interrupting his thoughts.

"Who are you calling 'bro'? Don't forget, I'm still a bit older than you." Lin Dong helplessly pushed Lin Changqiang's hand away and continued studying the technique.

"Martial arts don't care about age; the one who masters it is the big bro~" Lin Changqiang lay down on the grass without a care, but as soon as he did, he remembered the costume sitting in his backpack. He immediately called out in his mind without changing his expression, "System, when Lin Dong absorbs the Yin Fiend Qi, can I get an extra thirty percent?"

"Dong, reply to host: No, but when Lin Dong absorbs Yin Fiend Qi, he will gain Earthly Yuan Stage experience, and the host can obtain thirty percent of that experience."

"That's not bad either." Lin Changqiang's eyes lit up, and he immediately scrambled up with a delighted expression, grabbed Lin Dong, and dragged him down the mountain. Even though he could just take the costume out of the system right now, explaining it would be too much trouble. "Lin Dong, I've got something good in my room. Let me show you!"

"Something good? Is it a new Martial Art?" Lin Dong frowned slightly.

"What new Martial Art? It's even more exciting than Martial Arts! And it can make you stronger~" Lin Changqiang grinned mischievously. He knew that as long as Lin Dong heard about getting stronger, he'd be interested.

Sure enough, as soon as the words left his mouth, Lin Dong's eyes lit up: "Get stronger?"

"Yeah, come on, come see and you'll know!"

"Wait, Changqiang, the Azure Yuan Art!"

"Grab it, grab it. Come on, come on."

Time flies like an arrow, and days pass like a shuttle~ Who would've thought that in just a few minutes, a few minutes would pass, and Lin Changqiang and Lin Dong had arrived at Lin Changqiang's house?

"Da-da-da-da-da-da-da--" Lin Changqiang mimicked the sound effect of Doraemon pulling out a gadget, reached under the bed, and pretended to pull out the Ghost Captain Costume, giving it a name that fit the Tianxuan Continent even more: "Yin Fiend Ceremonial Attire!"

Whether it was an illusion or not, Lin Changqiang sometimes felt that his mindset had grown younger along with his body.

"To be honest, I got this Yin Fiend Ceremonial Attire from a clothing shop owner who didn't know its value. It can continuously condense Ninth-grade Yin Fiend Qi to help Earthly Yuan Stage cultivators train. Since we were both only at the Body Tempering Stage before, I didn't rush to tell you."

Lin Changqiang nodded and seriously started spinning a tale to Lin Dong: "Now that we've finally reached the Earthly Yuan Stage, and since you're my little bro, I'll graciously allow you to cultivate with me~"

"Who needs your graciousness." Looking at Lin Changqiang's kindly gaze, Lin Dong's gratitude hadn't even had time to rise before it vanished.

"Couldn't you come up with a better excuse? This treasure is clearly extraordinary. How could a clothing shop owner not recognize it?"

Lin Changqiang shook his head helplessly but didn't call him out.

"Changqiang is sharing such a treasure with me without any wariness. Even if he has some secret, so what? Everyone has their own secrets. Haven't I never told anyone about my Stone Talisman either?"

"Dong, detected that Lin Dong's favorability toward the host has increased to seventy."

Lin Changqiang blinked and finally let out a sigh of relief. Sharing the Ghost Captain Costume with Lin Dong wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision; it was carefully thought out.

Unlike the self-interested protagonists in some works, Lin Dong had always been one to leave others alone unless provoked, and he was extremely loyal and responsible to his own people. In the original story, he would even risk his life to save companions he'd only just met, let alone someone like him.

Of course, the most important and reassuring thing was that he could see other people's favorability! As long as he tracked the changes in favorability, he could tell if someone was harboring ill intentions toward him.

Clearly, this time, he had bet correctly.