Copper Skin Realm: Minor Accomplishment

Time passed day by day.

Ten days later, Xie An discovered a new problem:

He had thought that, with the foundation of the Health Cultivation Technique, breaking through to the Bronze Skin Realm would be simple.

The cruel truth made Xie An realize that he had been overthinking things.

The Health Cultivation Technique only strengthened his physical strength and enhanced his five senses, qi, and blood. It did not change his martial arts talent. After ten days of bitter martial training, Xie An discovered that he had no exceptional talent for martial arts.

Moreover, the Lifelong Legacy was only effective for the Health Cultivation Technique. It provided not the slightest boost to martial arts...

This discovery left Xie An depressed for quite some time.

Fortunately, Xie An had never expected himself to be a martial arts genius, so he quickly adjusted his mindset.

If his talent was lacking, he could make up for it with time.

Three hurried months passed in the blink of an eye.

In the early hours of this day, after Xie An had finished his usual patrol of the Blood Ridge Black Market, he returned to the side compound to practice the Health Cultivation Technique.

Only when his body and mind were utterly exhausted did he stop to wipe the sweat from his body and bring up the panel:

Current Lifelong Legacy: Level One!

Five Animal Play: Strengthening the Five Viscera (98/100)

Fetal Breathing Technique: Yin-Yang Convergence (47/100)

Remaining Lifespan: 30 years

After practicing the Health Cultivation Technique for so long, Xie An had formed a reasonable expectation of his progress. Although his current progress was rather slow, it still fell within his estimates.

"Although Strengthening the Five Viscera isn't maxed out yet, my strength has truly increased by quite a lot."

Xie An went into the courtyard and found a seven-hundred-pound stone lock. With a casual burst of strength, he lifted it above his head and swung it around freely for more than ten breaths without feeling overly strained.

Four months ago, merely lifting seven hundred pounds with one arm had left Xie An feeling greatly burdened.

Now, the increase was obvious.

"I'll try the eight-hundred-pound stone lock."

Xie An walked over to the eight-hundred-pound stone lock, gripped its handle, and began searching for the right feel.

This was the advantage of joining the Tiger Wolf Gate: there was no shortage of training equipment. Although these things did not belong to Xie An personally, there was no problem with using them.

"Ha!"

With a thunderous shout from Xie An, his right hand suddenly exerted force. The eight-hundred-pound stone lock was abruptly lifted above his head.

After holding it there for three breaths, Xie An felt his muscles contracting violently, followed by trembling and spasms. He had no choice but to set it down. When the stone lock hit the ground, it made the earth tremble faintly.

"Looks like lifting eight hundred pounds with one arm should be my current limit."

Although he had only increased his lifting strength by one hundred pounds over the past three-plus months,

That figure was already extraordinarily exaggerated.

One had to know that even a martial artist at the peak of the Bronze Skin Realm could lift only six hundred pounds. A martial artist who had just entered the Muscle Realm could lift only eight hundred pounds.

For Xie An to reach the lifting strength of a newly entered Muscle Realm martial artist through the Health Cultivation Technique alone was truly monstrous.

Xie An drew well water from the courtyard, stripped off his clothes, and, heedless of the cold weather, poured the icy water directly over himself.

"Splash!"

The cool well water slowly slid down Xie An's skin, as though slipping off oiled paper. It actually failed to wet his skin. After the water passed over it, his skin became dry again. Only the fine hairs on his bronze-colored skin remained, each bearing tiny droplets of water.

This was a sign that he had reached minor accomplishment in the Bronze Skin Realm.

His skin and flesh were as sturdy as cowhide, impervious to cold and heat, unable to be cut or scraped, and impervious to water.

That was right.

After three months of bitter training, Xie An had already entered minor accomplishment in the Bronze Skin Realm.

During that time, Xie An had claimed another Tiger Hide Elixir and spent his own money to buy more than a dozen sets. Only then had he reached minor accomplishment.

For an ordinary person to first enter the Bronze Skin Realm required at least one or two years. To reach minor accomplishment in the Bronze Skin Realm afterward would take at least another two years.

The reason Xie An had completed this progress in three months, aside from the extraordinary physical strength granted by the Health Cultivation Technique, was mostly because... he had worked too hard.

He practiced martial arts during the day, and cultivated the Fetal Breathing Technique whenever he went to sleep at night.

Day and night alternated, and every moment was used with high efficiency.

Moreover, because of the Fetal Breathing Technique, his body tired less easily, and his mindset remained steady.

That was what had brought about his current achievement.

After rinsing his body, Xie An did not put on any clothes. He simply picked up his saber and practiced the Fuyang Saber Technique in the courtyard.

Whoosh.

The instant he swung the saber, a shrill explosion rang through the air.

After beginning with the opening stance, the saber moved like a swimming serpent, nimble and ever-changing. Sometimes it swept horizontally, sometimes it hacked down, and sometimes it rose in an upward slash... Every move flowed as naturally as heaven itself, its might rolling like a great river.

The layers of fallen leaves scattered across the ground were swept up by the saber wind and sent drifting in every direction.

"As expected, after practicing martial arts techniques, my combat power has soared in a straight line. Even if I encountered a martial artist at the peak of the Bronze Skin Realm, I wouldn't be at a disadvantage."

Previously, Xie An had cultivated the Health Cultivation Technique and possessed brute strength with nowhere to unleash it.

Only after practicing saber techniques could he display the true might of the Health Cultivation Technique.

What was more, the Fuyang Saber Technique was no beginner-level saber art. To the Tiger Wolf Gate, it counted as an intermediate technique. After all, it was stored on the third floor of the Library Pavilion.

It was divided into three forms in total: Foundation, Crouching Tiger, and Blazing Sun.

The basic moves were nothing more than saber techniques such as hacking, slashing, lifting, thrusting, and striking. The foundation of the Fuyang Saber Technique, however, consisted of four types: straight thrust, horizontal slash, rising slash, and turning slash.

After tempering his foundation for three months, Xie An had not rushed to practice Crouching Tiger. Instead, he had solidified the four basic forms, striving to cultivate each one to perfection.

Although the Fuyang Saber Technique had combined its basic moves into four forms, the variations contained within them were extremely numerous.

The straight thrust alone included side thrusts, one-handed thrusts, two-handed thrusts, and so on.

There were truly a thousand transformations.

Even mastering this foundation alone was extraordinarily difficult.

Xie An knew full well that these basic saber techniques were the foundation of all saber arts and could be applied universally. He also intended to practice the Heavy Mountain Saber in the future.

It was not that Xie An was being overly ambitious. Mainly, ever since reading that notebook, he had been unable to forget it. He felt that the technique was tailor-made for his Health Cultivation Technique.

It was not until the sky began to brighten that Xie An stopped practicing the saber arts and sat on a stone stool in the courtyard to rest. He took out a dry cloth and wiped the dew from his saber.

"With my current strength, even if I encountered Chief Steward Lin Yun, I might not be without the power to fight. If I develop steadily for another year or two, I won't even fear a Hall Master."

Xie An did not like being hot-blooded and combative. He only wanted to develop quietly until he possessed enough strength to protect himself. He also wanted to see the world outside, and rely on the Lifelong Legacy... to live forever and gaze upon the ages.

For a man who had once been on the verge of dying from old age, nothing could make his blood boil more than immortality.

But everything had to be done step by step. Living in the martial world, if one lacked sufficient strength to protect oneself, one could be killed by a bandit or enemy at any moment. How could one talk about living forever then?

Not to mention anything farther away, just look at the Blood Ridge Black Market. Wei Dian had been seriously wounded by the Plum Blossom Monster, while the black market was being coveted by another Hall Master named Zhang Hengshui. Xie An had not known who Zhang Hengshui was before.

Only later did he learn that Zhang Hengshui was Zhang Biao's backer—and also Zhang Biao's uncle.

This made Xie An feel as though thorns were pressing against his back, leaving him uncomfortable all over.

If he wanted to develop steadily within the Tiger Wolf Gate, he had to grow as quickly as possible. Otherwise, if anything changed, he would become meat on the chopping block.

Once one entered the martial world, it was as deep as the sea.

He truly could not afford the slightest negligence.

Xie An withdrew his thoughts and focused on wiping his saber.

"This standard-issue saber is still too light. With my strength, I'm suited to a heavy saber. Once I have the money, I'll have to find a blacksmith at the black market to forge one."

At the mention of money, Xie An's head began aching again.

The money Li Shaoyun had given him earlier was already gone.

And since he had not seen that Night Pot Lad recently, the monthly pay from his position as a steward was nowhere near enough.

He was still... poor.

"Right, isn't Li Shaoyun quite wealthy? Back then, he had his father strip me of one hundred and eighty taels... Should I go strip a little back from him?"

Thinking of Li Shaoyun's conversation with Zhang Biao outside the Feiyun Restaurant last time... He had beaten his own disciple until his backside was a mass of bruises, and nearly tortured a confession out of him and caused a death.

Xie An was angry as well.

If not for his consideration for Madam Li, given Xie An's temperament... Li Shaoyun would already have been finished.

He would fleece him twice and consider it a lesson.

Xie An changed into his uniform brocade robe and summoned the accountant, Liang Zhi.

"Liang Zhi, how has Li Shaoyun been lately?"

Liang Zhi glanced at the masked Xie An and vaguely guessed what was going on. He said, "Li Shaoyun has been doing odd jobs these past few months. His spirits are low, and he's become listless. He begged me several times to bring him to see you. I thought that Your Excellency was devoted to practicing martial arts and didn't want to be disturbed, so I didn't agree."

Xie An said indifferently, "Go and give him a hint..."