The Tree Wants Stillness, but the Wind Will Not Cease—Is That All?

[Chen Mo]

Race: Human

Gender: Male

Age: 15/80

Aptitude: Quite Potential

Skills: Archery (Perfect Accomplishment) Tracking (Beginner) Culinary Arts (Beginner)

Cultivation Techniques: Turtle Breath Health Cultivation Technique (Proficient) Tiger Fist (Perfect Accomplishment)

Realm: Body Tempering (Inner Strength)

Enlightenment Count: 0

"It took two enlightenments just to raise the Turtle Breath Health Cultivation Technique from Beginner to Proficient. I'm looking forward to this technique more and more."

After moving his body around in the yard and carefully examining the status panel again, Chen Mo nodded in satisfaction.

"My lifespan actually increased by ten years outright! This is only the Proficient-level Turtle Breath Health Cultivation Technique. Once it reaches Perfect Accomplishment, my lifespan upper limit will most likely surpass a hundred years."

An age of a hundred was absolutely considered longevity in this world, yet Chen Mo could reach it with ease.

It was not just his age. His strength had also improved to a certain extent, though his realm had not changed. He was still in the Inner Strength Realm.

With my current strength, I should have no rivals in the Inner Strength Realm, right? Chen Mo thought.

Although he had not broken through to the Divine Strength Realm, the improvements to his age and physique still delighted Chen Mo. Looking forward to the gains once the Turtle Breath Health Cultivation Technique reached Perfect Accomplishment, a powerful premonition arose within him—he could rely on this technique to become a Divine Strength Realm Martial Artist.

After spending more time in the yard sensing the changes in his strength and fully adapting to them, Chen Mo left the house. He browsed and inquired at shops throughout the Commercial District, discovering that cultivation techniques were indeed sold here, but they were all Trash Tier techniques.

There were all kinds.

Even Trash Tier techniques cost around twenty taels of silver.

That might not have seemed too expensive, but few people bought them because the returns were too low. Only by cultivating one to the Perfect Accomplishment Realm could one possibly become a martial artist—and only the lowest-ranked Strength Refining Realm martial artist at that.

For an ordinary person to cultivate a Trash Tier technique to Perfect Accomplishment would definitely take decades.

Unfortunately, under normal circumstances, once a person passed thirty-five, if they had not reached the Qi and Blood Realm, their bodily functions would begin to decline. Their cultivation efficiency would decline as well, since their energy and stamina could no longer keep up.

Not to mention ordinary people who had not even reached the Strength Refining Realm. Once they passed that age, it became even harder for them to become Strength Refining Realm martial artists.

Even if they successfully cultivated a Trash Tier technique to Perfect Accomplishment before thirty-five and reached the Strength Refining Realm, they would still need to pass through the Inner Strength Realm, Divine Strength Realm, and Divine Valor Realm to complete Body Tempering, before reaching the Qi and Blood Realm.

For the rest of their lives, they would basically only be Strength Refining Realm martial artists. When they grew older, their realms would even regress as their bodies declined, turning them back into ordinary people. It was hardly worth the loss.

Yet even though the returns were not high, Trash Tier techniques were not cheap. After all, they were techniques that could turn someone into a martial artist.

With little money on him, Chen Mo could only purchase selectively. After visiting every shop that sold cultivation techniques, he found that the Shi Quan Merchant Association offered the lowest prices. The varieties were about the same everywhere, so he did not hesitate any longer.

For sixty taels of silver, Chen Mo bought the Body Hardening Iron Body Technique, the movement technique Flying Cloud Steps, and the Cleaving Wind Saber Technique, making up for his current weakness of only knowing fist techniques.

Having a realm but no Martial Skills made one nothing more than a reckless brute. Knowing only fist techniques was far too limiting, and Chen Mo did not want to have such an obvious weakness.

The three techniques would be enough to keep him cultivating for a long time. He just did not know how much they would improve his strength once all of them reached Perfect Accomplishment.

The Zheng Family Martial Arts School was definitely out of the question. By then, with his strength, entering a Martial Arts School in the Inner City should not be difficult. He would have considerable self-preservation ability and would no longer need to fear exposing his strength.

For now, though, he still needed to lie low and develop for a while longer.

With that thought in mind, Chen Mo returned to the house he rented and began living a secluded life. Apart from the people from the merchant caravan, he did not know anyone else in Hequ County. Basically no one would come to bother him, which suited him just fine.

The Turtle Breath Health Cultivation Technique did not need much practice. It mainly relied on enlightenment to improve its realm. More importantly, with his Quite Potential aptitude, his cultivation efficiency was too low, and practicing it would slow the entry progress of his other techniques.

Chen Mo's top priority now was to cultivate the three newly purchased techniques to the Beginner Realm. Then he could directly undergo enlightenment and rapidly grow stronger.

Of the three techniques, Flying Cloud Steps and the Cleaving Wind Blade had no additional cultivation requirements. He only needed to practice them step by step. As a Body Hardening Cultivation Technique, the Iron Body Technique needed to be paired with medicinal baths and medicinal ointment, making it somewhat more troublesome.

He just did not know whether, after the Iron Body Technique reached the Beginner Realm, he would still need to prepare medicinal baths and ointment if he used enlightenment to advance it.

With a goal in mind, Chen Mo's life became regular. He stayed busy every day, but his current aptitude was clearly not that impressive. Reaching the Beginner Realm in all three techniques was impossible in the short term.

Fortunately, time was what he lacked least right now. He also had over forty taels of silver left, which was more than enough.

And so, a week passed...

Using all seven opportunities for enlightenment on the Turtle Breath Health Cultivation Technique, Chen Mo successfully raised it to the Great Accomplishment Realm. The strength of one arm had already exceeded a thousand pounds, and his recovery ability had become even more formidable.

From Proficient to Minor Accomplishment, it took three enlightenments. From Minor Accomplishment to Great Accomplishment, it took four more.

At this rate, reaching Perfect Accomplishment in the Turtle Breath Health Cultivation Technique would probably require another five enlightenments—Five days.

Though he was clearly only in the Inner Strength Realm, the strength of one arm had already surpassed a thousand pounds, reaching the standard of the Divine Strength Realm. Chen Mo was in an excellent mood.

However, the tree wished for stillness, but the wind would not cease.

That day, Chen Mo followed his usual routine. After getting up early and going out for breakfast, he bought some ingredients and medicinal herbs needed to cultivate the Iron Body Technique, then headed straight home without wandering around.

The difference was that, on his way back this time, he clearly sensed that he was being followed.

"What a nuisance. Can't I just quietly keep a low profile?"

Just as Chen Mo was preparing to use the same trick again and turn into an empty alley, he discovered that more than ten men in Green Robes stood ahead, blocking his way. The man at the front was built nearly as large as Chen Chao and was quite muscular as well.

Yet Chen Mo did not sense any threat from him, which meant he was most likely an embroidered pillow.

Behind Zhuang Han, a man with a bandage wrapped around his shoulder stepped forward and glared at Chen Mo in fury.

"Kid, we finally found you!"

"In broad daylight, you're openly blocking someone's path like this. Is that really okay?" Chen Mo recognized the speaker.

He was precisely the fellow Chen Mo had knocked unconscious with a single club strike not long ago. As for the one whose head had hit the wall, he had not appeared. Presumably, he was still unable to get out of bed.

Chen Mo secretly regretted it. His mercy had brought him this subsequent trouble.

Sure enough, he should have cleaned things up properly.

"Hehe, don't worry. Even if you scream your throat raw, no one will come over here," the Bandaged Man sneered.

Hearing that, Chen Mo nodded slightly.

"Then that's good."

Before the other party could speak again, Chen Mo explosively pushed off the ground and charged straight toward the people blocking his way.

"Impudent!" The leader charged forward to meet him.

Yet he had only just started moving when Chen Mo was already before him. A bad premonition surged from his heart, and he instinctively raised both arms to block.

Outnumbered, Chen Mo did not hold back. Seizing the initiative, he threw a punch directly at the man's blocking arms.

Crack~

Chen Mo broke both arms with that single blow. The immense force sent the man flying backward after his arms snapped, crashing into the crowd behind him.

Everyone who had been preparing to attack was dumbfounded.

Recalling how the Bandaged Man had said Chen Mo was merely a little stronger than average, and that he had defeated them mainly through sneak attacks...

Now, watching Chen Mo press his advantage after landing a blow, charging into the crowd like a tiger among sheep, with no one able to withstand even one exchange and every punch sending another "little friend" flying, their intestines turned green with regret. This was merely a little stronger than average?

Not even their gang leader was this formidable, was he?

From the very beginning, the battle had been completely one-sided. Facing these ordinary people who had not even reached the Strength Refining Realm, Chen Mo felt not the slightest threat.

Every person struck by his fist seemed as though they had been hit head-on by a galloping carriage. They were sent flying outright, and the scene was quite spectacular.

Later on, Chen Mo even felt that fighting this way was too inefficient. He grabbed the nearest man by the shoulder and swung him around. After only a few swings, he had cleared the field. Apart from a few with decent physiques who lay on the ground groaning, everyone else had already fainted.

Turning around, Chen Mo found that the people who had been preparing to encircle him from behind had all fled. He raised an eyebrow.

"Is that all?"

A few minutes later, Chen Mo left the alley with more than thirty taels of silver on him. It seemed he could keep lying low for a while longer...