Lin Fan did not dare slack off. His qi circulated, drawing upon the meridians throughout his body.
He regulated his breathing and circulated the spiritual energy through his entire body.
That slight pain and numbing sensation struck him once again.
Yet the corners of Lin Fan's mouth lifted slightly, and he smiled.
This felt even better than the previous cleansing!
It was even more invigorating, stirring his spirit to the utmost.
Boom!
[System Notification: Congratulations, host. You have broken through to the second layer of the Xiantian realm] [System Notification: Congratulations, host. You have broken through to the third layer of the Xiantian realm] [System Notification: Congratulations, host. You have broken through to the fourth layer of the Xiantian realm]
Several voices echoed in his mind.
Lin Fan slowly opened his eyes, joy and disbelief filling his heart.
He circulated the qi through his body, and his aura burst forth.
At that moment,
the edges of his aura had changed from spikes into arcs.
His aura contained tremendous explosive power.
Compared to before, the qi within it was several times purer, and its momentum was magnificent!
"System, open the Attribute Panel!"
Name: Lin Fan Realm: Xiantian, fourth layer Magic Tool: Peachwood Sword (100% Daoist Art Amplification) Daoist Scripture: Seven Kills of Gods and Ghosts (First Rank) Daoist Arts: Purple Heaven Divine Thunder (Grand Perfection), Soul-Locking Evil-Repelling Talisman (Grand Perfection), Heaven-Piercing Eyes (Beginner), Shattering Order (Beginner) Merit: 0
"What did they mean by genius again?"
Lin Fan's face was full of delight as he sighed.
If he were to fight that old servant again now,
he could probably knock him down in a single move.
Even three to five Purple Zombies would be no problem.
It was just that he had used up all his merit. He still had to find a way to get more!
Shattering Order and Heaven-Piercing Eyes had only just reached the beginner level. There was still plenty of room for improvement!
The future was promising. The future was promising!
Lin Fan exhaled a long breath of stale air. He put no further thought into it, lay down, and fell asleep.
Morning.
Shouts rang out from outside the door.
"Little Martial Nephew, hurry up, hurry up!"
A voice urged him from inside the mortuary.
He had finally caught a treasure and wanted to take him back to teach Jia Le a lesson.
He could not delay for too long.
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes stood by the entrance to the mortuary with a line of zombies.
"I'm coming, I'm coming, Martial Uncle."
Lin Fan dressed lightly without bringing anything else and walked toward the door.
"Come back early."
Uncle Jiu spoke to Lin Fan.
"Senior Disciple Brother, give Jia Le our regards."
Qiu Sheng hurried over while struggling to put on a shoe that was not fully on yet.
Lin Fan nodded to everyone. "All right, go back inside. I'll be back soon."
With that, Daoist Priest Four-Eyes and Lin Fan set off toward the outskirts.
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes led the way, with a line of zombies following slowly behind him.
Lin Fan walked alongside him.
The two of them crossed the clean streets and headed into the distance.
Night fell in a small forest.
A cool breeze rustled through the woods, dispersing the heat of the day.
At that moment, the forest seemed like a quiet fairy-tale world.
It put people at ease, making them feel incomparably relaxed.
"We jump forward together, then we jump backward together. Twist as you jump, then jump with your legs spread."
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes' mischievous voice rang through the forest as he led a line of zombies in playing around.
Suddenly, he accidentally stepped on a round stone ahead.
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes fell with a cry, and the line of zombies behind him toppled down one after another like building blocks.
This Martial Uncle really loved putting on a show. How could he be so lively and cheerful at all times?
Lin Fan gave an awkward laugh and helplessly shook his head.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, gentlemen. Up!"
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes raised two fingers in a sword sign and touched the talisman on the forehead of the first zombie.
The entire line of zombies rose with it.
Jingle, jingle!
As Daoist Priest Four-Eyes shook the spirit shrine, its bells rang, and they slowly moved forward.
"Oh, right, Martial Uncle. You said that when I came out with you, you'd teach me the Spirit Invocation Technique."
Lin Fan, who had been following beside him, suddenly spoke up.
"Look at how anxious you are. I'll tell you once we reach our lodgings. Would your Martial Uncle lie to you?"
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes continued shaking the spirit shrine and hopping along.
"Martial Uncle, your cultivation is profound. Teaching me such a small thing while walking surely wouldn't trouble you, right?"
Seeing Daoist Priest Four-Eyes trying to evade the matter, Lin Fan flattered him.
As soon as he finished speaking, Daoist Priest Four-Eyes looked pleased. "Ah, Little Martial Nephew, there's something you don't know."
"It's not that your Martial Uncle refuses to teach you now."
"It's that the Spirit Invocation Technique is extremely demanding of the body and spiritual power."
"If you want to learn it, you must first learn the Body Refining Technique."
"What? Martial Uncle, are you trying to trick me?"
"I don't know any Body Refining Technique. Then what about this Spirit Invocation Technique..."
Lin Fan deliberately raised his voice.
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes immediately interrupted him. "Hey! You brat."
"Who do you think your Martial Uncle is? You're saying I can't even teach you a little body-tempering method?"
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes handed the spirit shrine to Lin Fan.
He raised both hands into sword signs and pointed them at his temples.
He lowered into a horse stance and circulated the qi throughout his body.
The qi passed through every meridian in his body.
Suddenly, his veins bulged.
A moment later, his entire body seemed to swell with muscle, and his figure grew slightly larger.
"There. Don't say your Martial Uncle was hiding anything. Whether you can learn it will depend on your own fortune."
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes shot Lin Fan a sidelong glance and did not elaborate.
Although he had already witnessed Lin Fan's talent,
the Body Refining Technique was different from other Daoist arts.
Having greater talent did not necessarily mean one could cultivate it faster.
Instead, it required methodical, continuous tempering of the body and spirit.
If the Spirit Invocation Technique were truly that simple, he would not be so proud of it.
In the path of body refinement, ordinary Daoists could not endure such suffering.
Most of them still preferred to study and work hard at the subtleties of Daoist arts.
This time, Lin Fan was probably going to hit a wall!
That was fine, too. It would temper the boy's pride and keep him from suffering at the hands of outsiders in the future.
"Thank you for your instruction, Martial Uncle. That's really all there is to it?"
Lin Fan understood immediately.
He then narrowed his eyes halfway and could not resist teasing Daoist Priest Four-Eyes.
It was no wonder. After spending so long with Uncle Jiu at the mortuary,
he was always so serious and rigid.
With such a lively Martial Uncle around, Lin Fan could not help becoming a little mischievous himself.
"What else? You make it sound as though you've learned it."
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes picked up the bamboo water flask and took a drink before taking back the spirit shrine.
Suddenly, Lin Fan used the exact same hand seals and pointed at his temples.
He lowered into a horse stance with the imposing force of an army that could not be toppled.
The aura of the fourth layer of the Xiantian realm burst forth.
His circulating qi flowed through every meridian.
The powerful aura instantly shook the branches around them.
As the aura burst out, a few fallen leaves drifted down.
[System Notification: Congratulations, host. You have learned the Body Refining Technique.]
A system notification rang out.
"Whew! This is how it's done, right, Martial Uncle?"
Lin Fan withdrew his aura and let out a long breath.
He gestured toward Daoist Priest Four-Eyes with ease.
"You... you really... Forget it, forget it."
Daoist Priest Four-Eyes seemed to start speaking.
He looked as though he had something to say but had no way to refute him.
Although he knew that Lin Fan possessed extraordinary talent,
his cultivation speed was also so monstrous that it left people dumbfounded.
But who could have imagined that he would learn the Body Refining Technique in a single move?
That was impossible!
Yet Lin Fan's body before his eyes was clearly more compact and powerful than before.
Anyone could see the terrifying sense of strength at a glance!
This... was crazy!
The whole world was crazy!
This kid was far too strange.
Before Daoist Priest Four-Eyes could finish sighing inwardly,
he suddenly saw that the mist in the forest seemed to have grown denser.
Smack!
A soft sound rang out.
A white silk scarf suddenly looped around one of the zombies in the line.
It pulled the zombie straight up and rapidly raised it toward the tree!
Before you continue