Under the Waterfall, Forging the Five Animals; In Imperial Ancestral Temple Alley, a Newcomer Arrives

Time Qi turned into an incense stick and burned, allowing An Le to see the glorious scenes from the past of those whose Time Qi had been drawn.

And An Le could control his mind to choose whether to fast-forward through them.

Of course, even when fast-forwarding, the effect of Time Qi's blessing remained the same. However, if he encountered scenes from the past that shared the same nature or origin as his own cultivation, he could gain insight through careful observation and emotional resonance.

For instance, this time, the grey Time Qi burned, and the figure revealed in the scene was practicing the "Five Animals Body Tempering Technique"!

Torrential rain poured down upon the deep mountains.

The cascading waterfall roared thunderously, weaving together with the rain filling the sky like thunder rumbling behind evening clouds!

Beneath the waterfall that plunged straight down stood a lone figure. It was an incomparably handsome youth, tall and slender rather than powerfully built. Yet as he stood still beneath the storm and waterfall, he resembled a pillar holding up the heavens—towering and unshakable!

The waterfall, spilling down like the Milky Way itself, crashed onto the youth's back like a silver vase shattering, yet he remained utterly unmoved.

Each breath rolled like muffled thunder. Then, the youth opened his eyes. Majestic Qi and blood erupted from his body as he struck with Tiger Style, swinging his claws amid the waterfall, lowering his body, and charging forward...

The Thirteen Tiger Styles were displayed by the youth with utter perfection. Boiling Qi and blood surged beneath his skin, colliding with the rushing water and evaporating into a vast white mist. The mist intertwined, vaguely forming a striped tiger that leaped and roared beneath the waterfall!

The waterfall's crashing force was borne by the youth's fleshly body, yet beneath such pressure, every move of Tiger Style remained flawless, without the slightest deviation!

This was the perfection of Tiger Style!

Beyond Tiger Style, the youth continued practicing other forms against the waterfall—the nimbleness of Deer Style, the steadiness of Bear Style, the trickiness of Ape Style...

Finally, the youth began practicing Bird Style. His body was like a keen sword, his movements like a hidden blade leaving its sheath.

Compared to Tiger, Deer, Bear, and Ape Style, the youth was somewhat sluggish and uncoordinated in Bird Style. Clearly, he had tempered the Five Animals beneath the waterfall precisely to bring Bird Style to perfection, allowing the Five Animals Technique to reach perfection!

The youth practiced with complete absorption. Whenever a movement was disharmonious, he immediately stopped and practiced it anew. The waterfall and rain scoured his back crimson, while faint streams of light seemed to shine from the bones beneath his skin!

That was the mark of the second realm of Body Tempering—Spirit Bone perfection!

Suddenly!

The youth formed his hand into a beak and shot upward at a slant from beneath the waterfall. In an instant, a piercing sound overwhelmed the roar of rain and falling water, like a streak of lightning abruptly flashing behind the clouds!

At that moment, all the discord in Bird Style was utterly scattered, weaving flawlessly together with the other forms!

At that moment, it seemed as though a White Crane's cry shot into the heavens. Like a sword drawn from its sheath, it rose from the abyss beneath the waterfall, piercing upward and cutting the waterfall nine feet high in reverse!

The scene gradually faded away.

An Le watched, utterly enthralled. Within his mind, the scene seemed to continue practicing and playing, never once stopping.

An Le recognized that handsome youth. He was Fourth Master Lin of Lin Manor. The scene must have been from Fourth Master Lin's youth, when he had attained perfection of Five Animals Body Tempering!

At the final moment, Bird Style had reached perfection, like a White Crane transforming into a sword to cleave through the waterfall!

Fourth Master Lin's delight and pride had been captured by Time Qi.

Inside the dark room, An Le inhaled and exhaled. The emotion and state from Fourth Master Lin's Five Animals Body Tempering seemed to cling to him.

Qi and blood began flowing beneath his skin, and the room's temperature suddenly rose.

An Le began practicing his fist techniques. After receiving the blessing of three wisps of Time Qi, his understanding and mastery of the Five Animals Body Tempering Technique seemed to have become far more familiar. Coupled with Fourth Master Lin's demonstrated state—

The power of Tiger Style soared in a straight line, as though a fierce tiger were prowling and leaping through the room.

Bang!!!

Lost in his training, An Le accidentally struck the chair. The wooden chair instantly exploded into pieces!

The lethality of Tiger Style had risen by more than a single level. As An Le practiced the Five Animals Body Tempering Technique, the Qi and blood within him circulated ever faster, and the force driven by his strength grew increasingly powerful!

Normal Body Tempering required medicinal broth to temper the body. The Five Animals Body Tempering Technique came with a specialized prescription, but An Le had never found time to purchase the ingredients.

Yet the Talent of the Ages Dao Fruit, Time Qi's blessing, and the sight of Fourth Master Lin's youthful scene of attaining perfection of Five Animals Body Tempering unexpectedly pushed his Qi and blood to surge rapidly!

It was like boiling water in a pot. Even while standing still, the sound of bubbling never ceased!

An Le continued practicing Bear Style and Bird Style. Deer Style and Ape Style were too nimble and required room to unfold, making them difficult to perform in this cramped chamber.

Thus, he did not practice them.

Bear Style like embracing a mountain was steady yet explosive, while Bird Style was sharp like a sword. With the Sword Dancer Dao Fruit's blessing, An Le comprehended Bird Style even faster, and his mastery had already become comparable to Tiger Style!

With his spirits soaring, An Le practiced the Five Animals until dawn.

That night, no one in the entire inn could sleep. Yet none dared to confront An Le about it. Such commotion was like a beast lying in wait... who would dare provoke it?

Only after the sounds in the room finally fell silent did the innkeeper nervously knock on the door.

"Young Master An..."

Seeing the wreckage inside and the shattered chair, the innkeeper became even more uneasy.

This Young Master An truly was a cultivator!

Why would a cultivator... stay at a run-down inn like theirs?

"Innkeeper, I became too absorbed in my training tonight and disturbed everyone. I will move out tomorrow. Take these ten taels of silver as compensation for the chair, and use the rest to buy drinks and food for the other guests as a token of my apology."

Hot sweat streamed all over An Le's body. The heat radiating from his mid-stage of Opening Qi and Blood made the innkeeper's legs go weak.

After sending the innkeeper away, An Le felt even more strongly that he could no longer delay changing residences.

After drying his sweat with a towel, An Le sat cross-legged and Entered Stillness for a moment, calming his mind.

He then opened his eyes and lit a candle. Rather than reading, he took out a drawing board and charcoal pencil, beginning to sketch the appearance of the river-and-lake bandit Captain Huang had described to him.

Rustle, rustle, rustle...

The sound of charcoal brushing against white paper was like silk and bamboo music entering the ear.

Outside the window, the east turned the pale white of a fish's belly. A faint glimmer of dawn spilled forth from the edge of heaven and earth.

Spring rain had fallen all day yesterday, but today's temperature had risen somewhat.

An Le rolled up the drawings, packed his belongings, settled the room charge with the innkeeper, and left the inn directly.

Huang Xian arrived in the morning air with a saber at his waist, radiating enthusiasm.

"Brother Huang, these are the portraits of the suspects based on the information you described."

An Le handed Huang Xian three sketches. To better capture the suspect, An Le had rushed to make two additional copies. With the first drawing as a reference, though, they had been completed quickly.

The strengthening of his Spiritual power and his growing mastery over his physical body had also greatly improved An Le's drawing skills.

Huang Xian spread open one of the drawings. Glancing at the vividly lifelike figure on the paper, he could not help but marvel. "So realistic. With this portrait, there may be some discrepancies, but so long as the resemblance is seventy or eighty percent, that suspect will find it far harder to hide."

"Thank you, Young Master An. If we catch this river-and-lake bandit, you will certainly receive your share of the credit."

Huang Xian clasped his fists and bowed to An Le.

An Le smiled. The two left together, strolling along the long street where the flow of pedestrians was still sparse.

"The courtyard is located in Imperial Ancestral Temple Alley on Qingbo Street. Its location is excellent, very close to Imperial Street. My brother spent more than half his savings to buy it. He had finally settled down in Lin'an Prefecture, but during an arrest of a cultivator criminal, he met with misfortune." Huang Xian sighed.

An Le nodded. Black Yamen constables had an extremely dangerous profession as well. After all, the criminals they faced were cultivators with cultivation.

After walking for some time, they stepped onto Qingbo Street and passed an octagonal, double-eaved, two-story pavilion with a pointed roof. Its carved beams and painted rafters made it quite imposing, while incense smoke curled within.

"This is the Imperial Ancestral Temple. His Majesty comes here every year to offer sacrifices. Its defenses are strict, and temple priests are stationed here, so do not approach carelessly..."

Huang Xian explained and cautioned him.

The Imperial Ancestral Temple...

An Le glanced at it and felt only majesty and grandeur. There was even an august aura bursting forth like the blazing sun, while terrifying Spiritual power coiled around the entire temple.

Even without Huang Xian's warning, An Le would not have approached it lightly.

They walked along Imperial Ancestral Temple Alley for a while before finally arriving at a separate courtyard. Its gate stood wide open, and inside, a woman was diligently sweeping. The entire courtyard was spotless.

Yet An Le's gaze could not help falling upon that woman.

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