An Le had never known what Time Qi was for. Though he had tried many times, he had never found a clue.
In truth, An Le was equally baffled by the Time Dao Fruit section on the light screen.
This time, after drawing a third strand of Time Qi from Fairy Yun Rou, the top Flower Queen, that strand of Time Qi behaved abnormally. It turned golden, burned on its own, and brought forth a strange phenomenon—allowing him to see the female sword immortal from such close range.
As the painting unfurled, his entire mind was pulled into it. He observed from a third-person perspective, much like watching a film.
An Le remained silent. In fact, he had no way to speak.
Inside the bedchamber, gauze curtains fluttered. The scent of rouge and flower powder lingered at his nose, carrying a faintly suggestive air.
Fairy Yun Rou wore a thin robe that exposed her fragrant shoulders. Her pale skin was as dazzling as fresh snow, irresistibly drawing the eye, and below that rose her proud, full curves.
Unlike the Fairy Yun Rou who had crossed West Lake with Sword Control, the Fairy Yun Rou before him wore no veil, revealing a face of pristine and peerless beauty.
It was said that few had ever seen Fairy Yun Rou's true face. Even wealthy officials and nobles who spent tens of thousands of taels for a chance to board the flower boats still saw only a veiled Fairy Yun Rou.
An Le had never expected that he would glimpse the fairy's true appearance just like this.
What a thrill, getting this for free...
It saved him quite a bit of silver.
Of course, An Le only glanced at her once before his gaze was drawn to the stream of azure Qi rising above Fairy Yun Rou's head.
What kind of posture was that?
Inside the room, invisible currents seemed to swirl. Though the doors were tightly shut, the gauze curtains billowed and howled as if lashed by a hurricane.
"She's cultivating!"
An Le immediately came to a conclusion. There was no explanation for such an inconceivable posture other than cultivation.
Could Time Qi allow him to witness Fairy Yun Rou's cultivation process?
But after watching, aside from being able to admire Fairy Yun Rou's pleasingly beautiful face, it seemed to have no other use.
After all, watching Fairy Yun Rou cultivate would not teach him how to cultivate as well.
An Le sighed regretfully. The long-awaited function of Time Qi seemed less than satisfactory, leaving him in low spirits.
He continued watching Fairy Yun Rou cultivate. The pressure within the room rose ever higher, and faint azure currents appeared out of thin air, converging in Fairy Yun Rou's palm and slowly flowing into her.
They spread through Fairy Yun Rou's entire body, making her seem to shine brilliantly.
At last, Fairy Yun Rou opened her eyes, and the raging wind in the room abruptly subsided.
The fairy's lips curved upward slightly. She stretched her arms overhead and lazily extended herself, an incomparably seductive hum escaping her lips and nose.
"My cultivation has finally broken through the Spirit Bone Realm and entered the Inner Core Realm. An Inner Core at eighteen—across all of Great Zhao, there are only a handful!"
Fairy Yun Rou was delighted and proud as she spoke to herself.
"Yun Rou, you're the best! One day, you'll become Great Zhao's number one female sword immortal! Charge, charge, charge!"
Fairy Yun Rou clenched her fists and threw punch after punch, brimming with fighting spirit.
That day, Fairy Yun Rou, whose cultivation had broken through, was the proudest person in the world.
Yet this overly dramatic display left An Le dumbfounded. So the frosty and aloof Flower Queen Fairy Yun Rou had such an adorable side that outsiders had never seen.
After witnessing Fairy Yun Rou's charmingly foolish appearance, the scene before him slowly dispersed. In the end, the painting closed.
That strand of Golden Time Qi vanished like incense burned to ashes.
The surrounding clamor returned. Night fell, and scattered lantern lights gradually came alive.
Clarity returned to An Le's eyes, but his mind replayed what he had just witnessed.
He had seen the instant "Fairy Yun Rou" broke through to the Inner Core Realm. An Inner Core at eighteen—Fairy Yun Rou had been immensely proud, treating that moment as the greatest triumph of her life?
In truth, it was indeed something to be proud of. Though An Le could not cultivate, he knew a little about cultivation.
An Inner Core at eighteen was enough to stand proudly above one region anywhere in Great Zhao.
But why would a genius who had reached the Inner Core Realm at eighteen go to the flower boats and become a Flower Queen? Wasn't that blatantly raising the industry's overall standards and preparing to crush all the other Flower Queens in the competition?
Flower Queen sounded elegant, but it was still a life fallen into the dust of the pleasure quarters, regarded by many as a lowly profession.
"Perhaps this Fairy Yun Rou... carries secrets unknown to others."
"Even if she truly carries secrets, they are not something an ordinary person like me can investigate."
Without dwelling too much on Fairy Yun Rou's identity, An Le thought of something, and the light screen appeared before him.
Name: An Le Time Qi: 2 strands Time Dao Fruit: Cultivation Genius (0/10) Note: Cultivation Genius (Dao Fruit): When cultivating, speed can be doubled, sensitivity to Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy increases, and comprehension improves.
His pupils contracted slightly. The light screen had changed. One strand of Time Qi had been consumed, and the golden strand of Time Qi he had just drawn had indeed disappeared.
Under Time Dao Fruit, the words "Cultivation Genius" had appeared.
In other words, by witnessing the instant Fairy Yun Rou broke through to the Inner Core Realm, he had condensed the Time Dao Fruit, "Cultivation Genius"?
Glancing at the description of the Cultivation Genius Dao Fruit, delight surged through An Le's heart.
Unable to wait any longer, he took a deep breath and slightly closed his eyes. Sure enough, he sensed a subtle difference.
Between heaven and earth, unique currents faintly stirred.
That was Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy!
It was said that Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy filled every corner of the world, but only cultivators could sense it.
Those with talent could draw in Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy, refine it into their bodies, and step onto the path of cultivation.
Those without talent could not even sense it, just like An Le in the past.
An Le had naturally been tested. This body possessed no talent for cultivation, which was why his Lineage had arranged for him to take the path of scholarship instead.
The original owner had been rather talented in studying. He had passed the provincial examination, become a recommended candidate, and come to the capital for the Spring Imperial Examination, intending to contend for Yi Bang Jinshi.
Though Yi Bang Jinshi was inferior to Jia Bang, one could still become an official. While it was difficult to become a high-ranking official, nothing was absolute. If one earned the appreciation of an important figure, there would still be a chance to climb high and see far.
And now, An Le could sense Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy. This meant that he possessed talent for cultivation!
An Le's heart surged as thoughts raced endlessly through his mind.
He gradually formed a guess as to how the light screen worked.
Time Qi might record moments when a person's emotions fluctuated intensely.
Emotions rose and fell constantly as a person grew. A human life was like a placid river, while moments of emotional upheaval were like waves splashing up from its surface.
There were glorious peaks, low valleys, fury, and helplessness. Perhaps all those moments could be recorded by Time Qi.
Perhaps he, An Le, could use Time Qi to glimpse those moments and condense Time Dao Fruits from them.
"Hahaha! No matter what, I, An Le, can cultivate now!"
An Le could not help but laugh aloud.
On the West Lake embankment, crowds surged and gathered. An Le stood amid the vast sea of people, grinning as he vented the excitement and turmoil in his heart.
In this immense world, people were like mayflies lodged between heaven and earth, a single grain in the boundless sea. Yet if one could cultivate, one might soar straight into the blue clouds and live a free, brilliant life.
He suddenly raised his wine jug and kept pouring wine into his mouth. The liquor flowed down his throat and soaked into his robes.
Yet An Le only continued to laugh softly as he walked onward.
The night deepened.
The young man in blue drank deeply, his figure disappearing into the scattered lantern light.
After draining a jug of wine, the evening breeze blew against him and cleared An Le's faintly drunken mood.
He arrived at a bookshop. Though An Le Now possessed the "Cultivation Genius" Dao Fruit and could cultivate, he knew absolutely nothing about cultivation and had no path to begin.
Thus, he came to the bookshop.
The bookshop owner stood behind the counter, working something out by lamplight. His abacus clacked loudly, bead after bead snapping against the frame.
An Le stepped inside, immediately drawing the owner's attention. "Customer, this shop is closed. Please return tomorrow to buy books."
An Le thought for a moment and said, "Shopkeeper, do you sell any introductory books on cultivation?"
The owner paused, raised the lamp, and carefully sized An Le up. He looked like a youth, but when it came to cultivation enlightenment, he was ultimately too old.
"Cultivation enlightenment is taught at Academies everywhere. If you did not cultivate back then, you naturally cannot cultivate now."
The owner smiled.
"However, a bookshop sells books. We do have cultivation enlightenment books issued by Great Zhao. If you want one, I can have someone prepare it for you, and you may collect it tomorrow."
Hearing This, An Le brushed off his blue robes and cupped his hands in salute. "Thank you, Shopkeeper."
Holding a lamp in one hand and a brush in the other, the owner smiled and waved him off. "You are too polite, Customer."
However, An Le changed tack. "But I have urgent need of it tonight. Could you sell the book to me now?"
The owner immediately froze, his brows drawing together as he prepared to refuse.
Then An Le said earnestly, "I can pay extra."
The owner swallowed the words at his lips and smiled as he changed his phrasing. "Please wait a moment, Customer."
Holding the lamp, the owner entered the back room. Before long, he found a book with a blue cover.
"Great Zhao Cultivation Enlightenment Record. This is the only cultivation-related book sold here. It was issued by the imperial court. For cultivators who have truly stepped onto the path, it is rather tasteless. If you want it, two taels of silver will do."
The owner said.
Two taels of silver for a book was not expensive, but neither was it cheap. It was likely the price after the extra charge had been added.
An Le did not haggle. He was eager to find a way onto the path of cultivation, so he decisively poured two pieces of broken silver from his money pouch and handed them to the owner.
After weighing them on a small scale, the owner gave An Le several copper coins in change.
Taking the book, An Le returned to his inn room, lit the lamp, and began reading.
The Great Zhao Cultivation Enlightenment Record had not actually been created by the Great Zhao court. Rather, it had inherited the cultivation enlightenment methods of previous dynasties and revised them upon that foundation.
The book introduced a cultivation method called the Qi Induction Breathing Technique, an extremely basic technique.
There was also a set of fist techniques called Zhao Ancestor Long Fist. Upon seeing its domineering name, An Le had been immensely excited. Only after reading through it did he realize that Zhao Ancestor Long Fist was indeed a martial art created by the founding emperor of Great Zhao, but it had been cut down until only three common opening stances remained. His interest instantly evaporated.
It could be said that every cultivator in Great Zhao, at the very least, knew how to throw three punches of Zhao Ancestor Long Fist.
That was how Zhao Ancestor's fame had arisen.
Zhao Ancestor Long Fist could even be considered Great Zhao's radio calisthenics.
With the support of the "Cultivation Genius" Dao Fruit, An Le read through the Zhao Ancestor Long Fist (Enlightenment Version) once by lamplight and understood seven or eight parts out of ten.
An Le did not rush to practice the punches. Instead, he sat cross-legged on the bed, slightly closed his eyes, and followed the circulation route of the Qi Induction Breathing Technique to sense Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy.
Inhale, exhale... At first, An Le was rather clumsy. After repeating it several times, his breathing grew increasingly smooth.
But smooth was smooth; An Le still could not capture Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy.
His brows furrowed tightly.
Suddenly, the light screen appeared before him, and An Le could not help but glance at it.
Name: An Le Time Qi: 2 strands Time Dao Fruit: Cultivation Genius (0/10 strands) Mastered Technique: Qi Induction Breathing Technique (0 strands)
An Le froze for a moment, then joy rose in his heart.
There was actually another section on the light screen!
The functions of this light screen could actually continue to be developed!
PS: The new book is setting sail. Please support it with follows and recommendation tickets!
Before you continue