Given Too Much

The style of Simplification was very Panel-like, and Chen Fei was quite satisfied with this result. He calculated the number of steps he walked every day now; if he worked a little harder, he could even cultivate the Water Treading Skill to the realm of Great Perfection in a single day.

By then, Chen Fei's Movement Technique would see obvious improvement. If he was diligent, fully fusing and cultivating all four Movement Technique Secret Manuals would probably take no more than four or five days. He would just have to see whether it could trigger a bit of Qualitative Change when the time came.

Putting down the Water Treading Skill, Chen Fei picked up Immortal Cloud Sword.

The Simplification of the Water Treading Skill was within his expectations. What mattered now was whether Immortal Cloud Sword could be acknowledged by the Panel and optimized. If it could, then the lack of High-Level Techniques would have less impact on Chen Fei.

It took a full two hours. By candlelight, Chen Fei read until his head spun and his eyes blurred, but fortunately, information on Immortal Cloud Sword finally appeared on the Panel.

Technique: Immortal Cloud Sword (Incomplete)

"Technique discovered. Spend fifty taels of silver to Simplify Immortal Cloud Sword (Incomplete)?"

"It really is Immortal Cloud Sword. Incomplete is normal enough, but the Simplification cost is a little high."

Chen Fei's eyes lit up slightly. His first goal had been achieved. Since it could be Simplified, the future looked promising. He might not be able to find genuine, unmistakable high-level techniques, but he could probably find a whole pile of these specious techniques that seemed right yet were wrong.

"Panel, Simplify Immortal Cloud Sword!"

"Immortal Cloud Sword (Incomplete) Simplifying... Simplification successful... Immortal Cloud Sword (Incomplete) → Immortal Guides the Way!"

A style of Sword Technique appeared in Chen Fei's mind. The moves were elegant and agile, swift as thunder, fleet as wind, thrusting out a sword strike from within the impossible. Chen Fei had not even begun practicing; merely looking at the Sword Technique in his mind was enough to leave him somewhat intoxicated.

"A good Sword Technique!"

A moment later, after Chen Fei finished absorbing the Sword Technique, he could not help praising it. Compared with Immortal Guides the Way, the Green Mountain Sword at Great Perfection was like a child flailing about, so crude it was almost unbearable to look at.

"This move, Immortal Guides the Way, is probably only a single technique within Immortal Cloud Sword, yet it's already so profound. How powerful must the complete Immortal Cloud Sword be? And what kind of colossal thing must the Immortal Cloud Sword Sect be!"

Chen Fei murmured to himself. Peering at a leopard through a bamboo tube, one could still glimpse a spot; the more he understood, the more he felt his own insignificance.

Chen Fei shook his head slightly, casting away the strange emotions in his heart, and his gaze focused back on Immortal Guides the Way.

If Chen Fei were to cultivate this Sword Technique step by step, with his current aptitude in the way of the sword, he probably would not even be able to enter the door for several months, and who knew when he would reach Perfection.

But using the Great Perfection Green Mountain Sword to fuse with Immortal Guides the Way felt somewhat out of place.

It was just like the earlier Fusion of the Qi Blood Pill and the Healing Pill. Two Pill Recipes with different effects could be fused, yes, but the result ended up a bit neither fish nor fowl.

The Green Mountain Sword could naturally also be fused with Immortal Guides the Way, but there had to be a primary and a secondary.

Immortal Guides the Way was higher-level, so it would definitely be the primary. In that case, most of the Great Perfection Green Mountain Sword would have to be discarded. And Immortal Guides the Way was only one move; in truth, it was more suitable to be used as a Killing Move, not as a complete Sword Technique.

Otherwise, if he went back and forth with only one move, and Chen Fei had not yet reached the level of one sword breaking ten thousand arts, he would be very easily countered. In the end, Chen Fei helplessly separated the two again.

"Can a Simplified technique be Simplified again?"

A thought suddenly popped into Chen Fei's mind. Thinking of this, Chen Fei directly gave the Panel the command to Simplify.

"Five Hundred Taels of silver!"

The information that popped up on the Panel somewhat startled Chen Fei. A second Simplification was possible, but it actually required ten times the amount of the first Simplification.

"Having money really does make people happy."

Chen Fei took several deep breaths and turned his gaze to the Water Treading Skill. He could not afford to Simplify Immortal Guides the Way, but the Water Treading Skill was still within reach. Chen Fei simply wanted to see exactly what effect a second Simplification would have.

"Water Treading Skill second Simplification in progress... Simplification successful... Water Treading Skill → Leg Shaking!"

Chen Fei's eyes widened slightly. Good heavens, this second Simplification had directly changed it from walking to shaking his leg; the difficulty could actually be lowered again. This money really had become all-purpose.

"So I need to work hard to earn money!"

Chen Fei could not help crossing one leg over the other and slowly shaking it.

Early the next morning, Chen Fei arrived at Qingzheng Medical Center as usual. He greeted the people he ran into along the way, then came to the alchemy room.

Chen Fei glanced at the Panel. The experience value of the Water Treading Skill had long since reached Perfection, and it was already extremely close to the level of Great Perfection. At the same time, Chen Fei discovered something: walking could still increase the Water Treading Skill's experience value.

In other words, after a technique underwent a second Simplification, the cultivation method from the first Simplification was still useful. It was equivalent to giving you one more method of increasing experience value.

Chen Fei was in a good mood. Walking here this morning, he could clearly feel that his body had become quite a bit lighter; evidently, the Movement Technique was taking effect.

Lighting the fire and setting up the furnace, Chen Fei began Refining Healing Pills.

The sale price of Healing Pills was still somewhat higher than Qi Blood Pills. Therefore, when Chen Fei Refined pills now, he always began with one furnace of Healing Pills, withheld a portion, and could either use them himself or take them to the Black Market to trade.

After that, he would Refine several furnaces of Qi Blood Pills, withhold a portion sufficient for his own use, and Sell all the rest.

Compared with last month, Chen Fei had intentionally increased his pill output somewhat this month. Improving just a little could make the people at the medical center feel that you had good talent, but it would not be too excessive. One had to control the degree properly.

That afternoon, while Chen Fei was taking Qi Blood Pills to cultivate, he was called over by Zeng Defang.

"Today I went to ask Young Miss. After Young Miss learned of your situation, she also intends to cultivate you, and plans to have you go to the medical center by the North City Gate and serve as a Deputy Manager."

Zeng Defang picked up his teacup, blew on it a few times, then took a sip and said.

"Is there danger?"

Chen Fei's brows furrowed slightly. His first thought was that this kind of good thing should hardly fall onto the head of someone like him. He did have talent in alchemy, but it was not to the level of shocking the world and making ghosts weep, so how could he suddenly leap to the position of Deputy Manager of a medical center?

"There's no danger, but there is a bit of trouble."

Zeng Defang pondered for a moment, then said, "Young Miss suspects that Steward Sun over there has some problems, and wants you to go take a look. You don't have much of a background, and you have a certain level of alchemy ability, so you happen to be able to sit in this position without arousing too much suspicion."

"Don't be so quick to refuse."

Seeing Chen Fei's expression, Zeng Defang could not help laughing, then said, "In order to have you go over there, Young Miss has decided to adjust your profit share from thirty percent to forty percent. At the same time, the Pill Recipe for the Grass Return Pill can also be given to you directly. If you can find evidence of Steward Sun's wrongdoing, even giving you the Pill Recipe for the Light Spirit Pill is not out of the question."

Chen Fei opened his mouth. The words of refusal he had been about to say were swallowed back down all at once. It was not that he did not want to refuse; it was just that the other party was giving too much, so much that Chen Fei could not think of a reason to refuse.

Going from thirty percent to forty percent would raise the speed at which Chen Fei accumulated money by a level. Having discovered the Panel's second Simplification function, the current Chen Fei needed money without fail if he wanted to rapidly increase his strength—indeed, the more, the better.