True Essence Sword Finger

Gold—an entire chest full of gleaming gold.

Inside Mountain Crossing Wind's Storage Bracelet, the most eye-catching item was a chest of glittering gold. Every gold ingot was a full ten-tael Jin Yuanbao. A rough estimate put fifty ingots on each layer, with around six layers in all—roughly three thousand taels of gold.

Three thousand taels of gold meant a massive sum of thirty thousand taels of silver, nearly matching all the wealth Ye Zhen currently possessed.

Yet that most dazzling chest of gold was not the most valuable thing in Mountain Crossing Wind's Storage Bracelet. The most valuable items were those bottles of pills.

Ye Zhen counted roughly. There were five bottles of Condensing True Pills alone, each worth ten thousand taels of silver. Those five bottles alone were worth a fortune of fifty thousand taels.

There was only a little more than one bottle of Blood Origin Pills, worth two thousand taels of silver per bottle. Presumably Mountain Crossing Wind had little use for them, so he had not kept many. What puzzled Ye Zhen was that the most plentiful pill in Mountain Crossing Wind's Storage Bracelet was actually one called the Essence Tempering Pill.

The Essence Tempering Pill was an auxiliary pill. Taking it could not directly increase one's cultivation, but it could help a martial artist temper True Essence, making it purer and more refined.

Mountain Crossing Wind's Storage Bracelet contained as many as ten bottles of Essence Tempering Pills, even more than the cultivation-boosting Condensing True Pills. This left Ye Zhen somewhat puzzled.

However, when Ye Zhen's gaze fell upon the two manuals in the corner of the Storage Bracelet, he immediately understood.

Of the two cultivation manuals, one was called the True Essence Secret Technique: True Essence Sword Finger!

The other was the Flowing Water Cotton Palm mentioned by Guard Captain Guan Ping. After flipping through it briefly, Ye Zhen understood that the Essence Tempering Pills in Mountain Crossing Wind's Storage Bracelet had all been prepared for the True Essence Secret Technique: True Essence Sword Finger.

After reading through the True Essence Secret Technique: True Essence Sword Finger, Ye Zhen immediately broke out in a cold sweat. Fortunately, Mountain Crossing Wind had not mastered this True Essence Secret Technique: True Essence Sword Finger. If he had, Ye Zhen might already have become a cold corpse.

The True Essence Secret Technique: True Essence Sword Finger was a special method for wielding True Essence. It was said that Qi Yun Sect possessed similar methods, but True Essence Secret Techniques were exceedingly powerful and precious. Not to mention an Outer Disciple like Ye Zhen—even Inner Disciples could not receive them easily.

Once mastered, the True Essence Sword Finger was very simple. Through a special method of driving True Essence, one could condense a True Essence Sword Finger at one's fingertips.

Depending on one's cultivation, the condensed True Essence Sword Finger could be lengthened or shortened at will, and its power rivaled divine weapons and sharp treasures. Most importantly, once mastered, the True Essence Sword Finger could be used in conjunction with any martial skill.

Take Ye Zhen's Spirit Snake Vein-Cutting Hand as an example. Originally, when he pointed at an opponent, all of the opponent's defenses would be built around blocking that one finger.

But if he mastered this Finger Sword Art, then when his finger was two feet from the opponent's throat, at the instant the opponent moved in to block and kill, the True Essence Sword Finger could shoot out in a flash. There would be only one result!

The throat would be pierced through!

If mastered, this True Essence Sword Finger would be as elusive as a god and as unpredictable as a ghost, impossible to guard against.

However, to master the True Essence Sword Finger, one needed not only abundant True Essence, but an extremely high degree of purity in that True Essence—as pure as mercury.

The large stock of Essence Tempering Pills in Mountain Crossing Wind's Storage Bracelet had been meant to temper his True Essence, with the intention of mastering the killing move that was the True Essence Sword Finger.

"I need exceptionally pure True Essence. I wonder whether mine is pure enough?"

After reading the manual for the True Essence Sword Finger, Ye Zhen could not help feeling eager to try.

At once, Ye Zhen followed the cultivation method recorded in the True Essence Sword Finger manual step by step and began attempting to cultivate it.

Though the steps for the True Essence Sword Finger looked simple, the method of driving True Essence was exceptionally mysterious. Several meridians that even Ye Zhen did not know existed were included in the circulation route.

More than half an hour later, Ye Zhen suddenly felt a tightening at the tip of his index finger. Ssst!

A pure azure True Essence sword aura, visible to the naked eye, gave off a faint whistle as it tore through the air and abruptly appeared at the tip of Ye Zhen's index finger, extending and retracting at varying lengths along with the strength of the True Essence he drove.

Swish!

With a light movement, an iron spear forged from refined steel standing inside the military tent was cut cleanly into two by Ye Zhen's True Essence Sword Finger. The severed surface was smooth as jade, like a bright mirror.

Hiss!

Ye Zhen sucked in a sharp breath.

Ye Zhen was not surprised that he had mastered the True Essence Sword Finger so quickly. Both the Essence Blood Origin Body Art he had cultivated before and the Primal Chaos Unity Art he now cultivated placed great emphasis on tempering True Essence.

Moreover, he possessed a rare treasure like the Mirage Dragon Pearl within his body, which could continuously temper his True Essence and make it incomparably pure. Thus, mastering the True Essence Sword Finger now was only natural, like water reaching a channel.

What astonished Ye Zhen was the True Essence Sword Finger's power.

If that sword struck a person, there would be no chance of survival. In battle, if it suddenly launched a sword strike, who could withstand it?

Perhaps only those at the True Essence Realm Third Stage who had condensed Body-Protecting True Gang could resist it. But even such True Essence Realm Third Stage experts would need True Essence as pure as Ye Zhen's to block the True Essence Sword Finger.

"True Essence Secret Techniques truly are powerful!"

The True Essence Secret Technique: True Essence Sword Finger was simply too formidable. Used properly, it would be a precious weapon for defeating enemies and securing victory at critical moments.

Its only flaw was the enormous consumption of True Essence. Ye Zhen had maintained the True Essence Sword Finger for merely a hundred breaths, yet more than half the True Essence in his dantian had been depleted.

But before such immense power, the True Essence Sword Finger's flaw was no longer a flaw.

After putting the manual back into the Storage Bracelet, Ye Zhen was overjoyed. Compared to that chest of Jin Yuanbao and those many pills, the most valuable gain had been this True Essence Sword Finger.

The value of such a True Essence manual could not be measured at all. It was something one could encounter only by chance, never seek out deliberately.

After calming himself, Ye Zhen picked up the Flowing Water Cotton Palm and began reading it.

The Flowing Water Cotton Palm was a Human-tier Low Grade martial skill. Its momentum flowed on endlessly like water. Once unleashed, its force came in an unbroken stream, and its power was immense. When cultivated to profound heights, its fist momentum resembled a whirlpool in water—once trapped within it, one found it extremely difficult to break free. It was a rather ingenious fist art that struck after the enemy moved.

After reading through it once, though he had not cultivated it, all the subtleties of the Flowing Water Cotton Palm had already entered Ye Zhen's eyes.

The strength and ingenuity of many martial skills lay in an opponent's ignorance. Once understood, a skill such as the Flowing Water Cotton Palm, whose value lay in its unceasing fist momentum, became far less difficult to deal with than it had been before one obtained the manual.

Now that Ye Zhen knew every subtlety of the Flowing Water Cotton Palm, though he had not cultivated it, breaking it would be as easy as turning over his hand.

Ye Zhen believed that if Mountain Crossing Wind stood before him again, then with his pure True Essence, defeating him would be as easy as turning over his hand.

The next day, Ye Zhen returned to Wuan Commandery City together with Commandery Guard Captain Guan Ping.

"Senior Brother Ye, could you rest in the commandery city for a few days?" Just as Ye Zhen was about to take his leave, Guard Captain Guan Ping suddenly asked.

"Why?"

"Senior Brother Ye, it is like this. For killing Mountain Crossing Wind, apart from Military Merit, there is also a commandery reward. But for the commandery reward to be issued, the Commandery Governor must approve it and affix his seal. Unfortunately, the Commandery Governor has gone to inspect the administration of the various counties, so Senior Brother will need to wait a few days."

"A reward? The brothers suffered grievous casualties. I would rather not take this reward—divide it among the brothers instead!" Ye Zhen was young and hot-blooded. After half a day's time, he had already become familiar with this group of soldiers from the commandery government.

Guard Captain Guan Ping's old face reddened, and he hurriedly shook his head. "Senior Brother Ye has already shown the utmost benevolence and righteousness by sharing the Military Merit with the brothers. If we took this reward too, could we still call ourselves men?"

After a pause, Guan Ping added, "Senior Brother Ye, why not stay two or three days? The Commandery Governor will return by then. Besides, the brothers also want to drink with Senior Brother until we are thoroughly drunk..."

"Brother Guan, I truly am homesick as an arrow..." Ye Zhen wore an apologetic expression.

Guan Ping frowned. "Since that is the case, I will keep this reward for you. With me here, it definitely will not run away. Come, this junior brother will see you out of the city. Senior Brother Ye, if there is anything in Wuan Commandery that you cannot settle, just give my name. In this Wuan Commandery, no one dares refuse me a little face..."

Halfway through, Guan Ping suddenly stopped. "Look at me. With Senior Brother Ye's cultivation, what could there possibly be in Wuan Commandery City that you cannot settle?"

"I will remember Brother Guan's generous kindness. But I truly do have something to trouble Brother Guan with!"

As he spoke, Ye Zhen handed Guan Ping all the Monster Beast hides and miscellaneous parts from the beasts on his back, including the hide of the Phantom Snake King.

"Brother Guan, I am homesick as an arrow and truly cannot wait any longer. Please help me dispose of these Monster Beast pelts. And this Phantom Snake King hide—please trouble Brother Guan to find craftsmen to make two close-fitting leather armors for me."

"Brother, do not worry. With me here, I will absolutely sell these things for a good price. Come, I will see you out of the city!"

When they reached the city gate, Guan Ping suddenly pulled Ye Zhen aside. "Senior Brother Ye, I heard that when you stormed the bandits' nest that day, He Bancheng offered half his family fortune as a reward. Now that his daughter has been rescued, he has forgotten all about it in the blink of an eye.

"What do you say? Shall I help you knock some sense into He Bancheng and make him cough up the reward he promised?"

Hearing this, Ye Zhen gave a spirited smile. "That day, I charged into Mountain Crossing Wind's lair only for justice, because Mountain Crossing Wind's gang was too cruel and vicious—they would not even spare young children.

"Even without He Bancheng's reward, I would still have charged into Half-Step Many without hesitation.

"Let blood splash three feet high—how could it be for a reward?

"Brother Guan, this little brother bids you farewell!"

With a flick of the reins, the Silver-Horned Horse beneath Ye Zhen surged out like the wind, leaving Commandery Guard Captain Guan Ping standing there in a daze. After a long while, Guan Ping raised a thumbs-up from afar toward Ye Zhen, who had become nothing more than a black dot!

************

P.S. Let me tell the brothers something: hand, foot, and mouth disease is extremely troublesome. I cannot guarantee the timing of updates for these next two or three days, but Pig Three will absolutely guarantee two updates every day.

Lastly, I have to say it again: brothers, please give me a recommendation vote.

We have the Sanjiang big airplane, and our bookmarks have broken through the eight-thousand mark. Why, then, are our figures so much lower than those of other books with fewer bookmarks? I will not go into the reason; the brothers all understand. I only ask the brothers to lend Pig Three a hand!

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