This Debt Can Never Be Repaid, Never

The Gale Cloud Movement Technique lived up to its name.

Once unleashed, it was as swift as a gale and as elusive as drifting clouds, making it highly useful for both pursuing enemies and evading attacks.

Xiao Rang watched with satisfaction as Lin Heng quickly learned the Movement Art, progressing from clumsy unfamiliarity to proficiency.

When Lin Heng stopped to rest, Xiao Rang commented, "Disciple, for now, learn these three sets of martial arts first. Once your cultivation grows deep, I will teach you other profound martial arts."

Lin Heng's current cultivation was still shallow. Even if he possessed powerful and profound martial arts, he would be unable to bring out their true might, so Xiao Rang was in no hurry to teach him anything else.

With the three sets of External Martial Arts—the Cloud Sword Nineteen Forms, Primordial Finger, and Gale Cloud—it was enough for the time being, whether for tempering his Muscles, Bones, and Physique or facing enemies.

"Alright."

Lin Heng was not in a hurry either.

This Great Grandmaster Xiao Rang surely understood martial arts better than he did. As a beginner, what he needed to do now was not let his imagination run wild and improvise, but follow instructions.

After practicing the two sets of martial arts, it was time for lunch.

Today's lunch differed greatly from before. First, the thin Emerald Rice porridge had been replaced by distinct, separate grains of rice. There was also a plate of crisp green vegetables, a plate of meat, and a bowl of Black-Bone Chicken soup with a pronounced medicinal aroma.

"These vegetables are grown from the leaves of a selectively cultivated Spirit Medicine. They are called Jade Cabbage and can nourish qi, soothe the spirit, strengthen the foundation, and cultivate vitality. The meat is Spirit Deer Meat, while the soup is made by stewing Hundred-Year Ginseng with Black-Bone Chicken King. All of them greatly replenish qi and blood."

"Now that you have formally begun Internal Cultivation, disciple, you need even more nourishment for your qi and blood. It can speed up your cultivation."

Sitting across from Lin Heng, Xiao Rang saw the curiosity on his face and explained.

Cultivating with the Power of Heaven and Earth was indeed fast. A single cultivation session equaled dozens of circulations for an ordinary person, but with the support of these Spirit Medicines and Spirit Foods, cultivation became even faster.

This time, Lin Heng did not ask about the prices of the ingredients.

He sampled each dish and found them incomparably delicious. Before long, he felt refreshed and clear-headed, his energy brimming.

Based on the nourishing effects these foods brought, Lin Heng, whose understanding of this world had deepened, quickly estimated the price range of these ingredients himself.

"The vegetables are probably around one hundred and twenty taels of silver per jin, the meat two hundred taels per jin, and each Hundred-Year Ginseng fifteen hundred taels."

"Because of the limits of my appetite, there is not much food on this table, but it still costs four hundred taels of silver in total. Dinner will follow the same standard. Even if breakfast is lighter, the daily expenditure will still exceed a thousand taels of silver."

"In a few years, once I grow up and eat more, it will probably cost over two thousand taels a day."

Lin Heng calculated silently.

One thousand taels a day meant over three hundred thousand taels of silver a year. At two thousand taels a day, it would be more than seven hundred thousand taels a year. That did not even include other pills and daily expenses.

By conservative estimates, by the time Lin Heng grew up and completed his apprenticeship, the Sect would have to invest at least five million taels of silver in Cultivation Resources for him.

Such investment was entirely due to Lin Heng's formidable cultivation Talent, in the hope that he would one day become the pillar supporting the Sect.

I can only cultivate diligently.

Lin Heng ate quietly without saying much, merely making a firm resolution in his heart.

However, Lin Heng soon realized that his estimate of the Sect's investment was still far too conservative.

Dinner was held to an even higher standard than lunch. The reason was that many premium ingredients with nourishing effects had not yet been gathered at noon. Some had been collected, but had not yet been prepared.

By evening, that portion could be served on the table.

After dinner, Xiao Rang had also prepared a Medicinal Bath for Lin Heng. This Medicinal Bath was formulated from many rare medicinal ingredients. Long-term soaking could strengthen the foundation, cultivate vitality, and promote the growth of one's Physique. Other than being expensive, it had no Side Effect whatsoever.

If this standard continued, Lin Heng felt that by the time he completed his apprenticeship, he might consume more than ten million taels of silver worth of Cultivation Resources from the entire Sect.

"Do not think too much about it. Nurturing you was a joint decision made by the Sect Elders."

"Disciple, you only need to cultivate well."

Xiao Rang saw that Lin Heng, soaking in the Medicinal Bath, seemed somewhat uneasy and spoke with a smile.

Not long ago, Xiao Rang had needed to use a few little schemes to prepare a Dragon Tiger Golden Core for Lin Heng. But after learning that Lin Heng had already cultivated Internal Cultivation and directly entered the Xiantian Realm—

Without Xiao Rang needing to say anything, the many Elders unanimously decided to allocate the Sect's finest Cultivation Resources to Lin Heng.

As long as he could eat it, he would have all the Spirit Medicines and Spirit Cuisine he wanted.

Over the past half year of spending time together, everyone had confirmed Lin Heng's excellent character. Now that Lin Heng had displayed peerless Talent, there was no reason for them not to place a heavy wager on him.

This debt can never be repaid, never. In the future, I can only devote myself to the Sect until death.

Lin Heng suppressed his excess emotions, muttered to himself inwardly, and began quietly enjoying the tingling, numb sensation brought by the Medicinal Bath.

For the next period of time, Lin Heng's life entered an extremely regular rhythm.

Every morning, after getting up and washing, he would sit in meditation and practice Qi Refining, followed by the cultivation of External Martial Arts. Although Lin Heng soon trained all three sets of martial arts to the pinnacle, he still cultivated diligently without interruption every day, using them to temper his Physique.

Before going to sleep each night, Lin Heng would soak in a Medicinal Bath and read for a while to settle his mind.

With each passing day, Lin Heng could clearly feel his own growth.

His Physique grew stronger by the day, his mind became increasingly Tough, and the Internal Breath accumulated within his Dantian Qi Sea became deeper and more abundant.

Soon, seven months had passed.

At night, Lin Heng sat in meditation with his focus gathered while soaking in the bath barrel.

Through inner vision, he could clearly see that his Dantian Qi Sea was filled with pure Internal Breath, like drifting clouds.

This Internal Breath circulated according to the Great Circulation. At first, it had been intermittent, like a broken stream, but now it gradually connected throughout the Meridians of his entire body. In the end, it became like an ouroboros, its head biting its tail.

At that moment, a qualitative transformation occurred.

Lin Heng's consciousness withdrew. He no longer guided qi with his intent, yet the Internal Breath coursing through his Meridians and Acupoints did not cease. Instead, it formed a cycle of its own, circulating endlessly throughout the Meridians of his body according to the Great Circulation.

This self-circulating Internal Breath continuously Refined qi and blood, growing stronger along with the primordial qi that existed everywhere between Heaven and Earth.

Although the speed at which this autonomous circulation accumulated cultivation was inferior to Lin Heng concentrating on circulating qi, amounting to only around one-fifth of the effect, its advantage was that it ran without pause twenty-four hours a day. It did not stop even while he slept. Over time, the cultivation gained would not be a small amount.

Achieving this endlessly self-sustaining quality meant that Lin Heng had completely become a Xiantian Expert.

Not only had he attained the Realm, but his Combat Power was now fully in place as well. This was far faster than originally expected.

This was not merely due to Lin Heng's Diligent Cultivation, but also the abundant Cultivation Resources provided by Cloud Sword Palace.

Very good. Next, I can open up my Acupoints.

Lin Heng briefly sensed his current condition, excitement rising in his heart.

Over the past seven months, Lin Heng had made up for his foundation and become a genuine Xiantian Expert. Next, he could mobilize his Internal Breath to open more than a thousand Acupoints throughout his body, turning each Acupoint into a Dantian Qi Sea and storing vast internal power within them, using this to break through toward the Grandmaster Realm.

There were still five months until the Master Acknowledgment Ceremony. Before then, Lin Heng planned to open as many Acupoints as possible.