Night Raid on the Feng Family, Learning a Secret Martial Art (Thanks to the Book Friend for the League Leader!)

Mu Ye let out a soft breath.

For now, if he wanted to keep improving, he could only look for a Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art that trained the torso.

Or he could focus on various weapons, such as swordplay, saber techniques, staff techniques, and the like.

Secret Martial Arts for weapons could open additional apertures in the limbs or strengthen the power of apertures that had already been opened.

Training in multiple Secret Martial Arts would make the Divine Apertures stronger, which in turn would strengthen every aspect of the body.

The trouble was that different Secret Martial Arts could easily clash.

Each had its own highly distinctive method of cultivation, and most Martial Warriors had limited Root Bones. Their physiques couldn't support training in multiple Secret Martial Arts. The result was that the various forces tangled and clashed inside them, and they ended up dead.

For example, if someone with the Crimson Flame Fist trained their arms in a Secret Martial Art like the Frost Blade Technique, the two would clash.

But some people had extraordinary Root Bones and unusual physiques, allowing them to accommodate multiple Secret Martial Arts.

Such people often had a much higher ceiling, but they were few and far between.

"After ten levels, Crimson Flame Force and Vajra Force reach their limits."

Crimson Flame Force was the Punch Force that came with the Crimson Flame Fist. Mu Ye had already grasped it at the fifth level.

Once it reached perfection, Crimson Flame Force would transform into Crimson Flame Qi. If he reached Fourth Grade and had ample Divine Apertures, the Qi could be released from his body.

At close range, the Crimson Flame Fist could then become a long-range Crimson Flame Fist Qi.

Releasing Qi beyond the body was the hallmark of Fourth Grade.

When Shen Qingchan had seen the Demon Sealer use the Geng Metal Grass-Cutting Sword, she'd assumed he was Fourth Grade.

In truth, it was just a minor spell.

That alone showed how spells in the Cultivation World could overwhelm Secret Martial Arts.

"If I could bring those Green Peak Needles into the game, I could probably kill Fourth- and Fifth-Grade opponents as easily as anything..."

Mu Ye shrugged.

In fact, once Martial Warriors reached Fourth Grade, their combat strength became quite apparent.

Using spells that were too low-level would no longer give them much of an advantage.

Of course, there weren't many Fourth-Grade experts. They could be counted on one hand in Taiping City, and Mu Ye hadn't even heard of many.

Even Third-Grade experts were exceedingly rare.

These past few days, since his proficiency in the game had been rising quickly, he'd simply spent more time practicing the Object Manipulation Technique in real life and training with the Green Peak Needles.

He'd made a little progress, at least.

"If I'm counting right, the Shen Mansion side quest will come due in about half a month."

Feng Wuque of the Feng Family had broken through to Third Grade at a young age and thrown a grand banquet, inviting many of Taiping City's gentry and wealthy lineages.

Word had spread throughout Taiping City.

They said Feng Wuque planned to host a banquet and discuss martial arts to raise the Feng Family's prestige. That was the public explanation.

In private, Mu Ye suspected he had other plans.

"There's nothing worth practicing right now. Why not scout the Feng Family first?"

A thought stirred in Mu Ye's mind.

He'd been practicing these past few days. Of his other characters, only the Demon Sealer had gone to the Shen Mansion, where he'd reported on the Shen Qingchan mission.

When the urge struck, Mu Ye logged off, switched to the Rogue, and headed straight for the Feng Family after dark.

The Feng Family estate was even smaller than the Shen Mansion. It wasn't hard to see why the Shen Mansion had become a target.

They were far too wealthy.

The Hero Shen had once sat guard over the household, but after Shen Tianxing's death, naturally everyone wanted a piece of it.

What surprised Mu Ye, however, was that the Feng Family's guards were far stricter than those at the Shen Mansion or the Iron Leg Sect.

Every corner of the estate was heavily guarded. Armored soldiers patrolled back and forth, leaving no blind spots at all; even the dog holes had guards posted beside them.

These soldiers had clearly opened Divine Apertures. They weren't ordinary Martial Warriors—at the very least, they were First-Grade Martial Masters.

No matter where someone tried to sneak in, they'd be discovered. Even if they disguised themselves as servants, they'd be questioned whenever they entered or left the estate, and the slightest irregularity would get them seized.

"The Feng Family has military roots. Their estate is too tightly guarded..."

Mu Ye thought to himself.

It was sealed up tighter than a drum.

The more tightly guarded it was, the more Mu Ye wanted to sneak inside and take a look.

There had to be something going on.

"If only I knew the Five Elements Evasion Technique. In True Mode, no matter how heavily guarded the Feng Family is, it wouldn't matter."

With the Five Elements Evasion Technique, the Rogue's Lightness Skill, and his lockpicking, he could strip the Feng Family bare.

Of course, that was just wishful thinking.

The Five Elements Evasion Technique wasn't an ordinary spell. For someone in the Qi Refining stage, learning it was harder than ascending to heaven.

"I don't have the Five Elements Evasion Technique...but I do have the Light Body Technique."

The Light Body Technique was a low-level spell that made the body light as willow fluff. It was usually the best way for Cultivators without flying artifacts to travel.

"I'll give it a try..."

Mu Ye entered True Mode and cast the Light Body Technique on himself.

At Third Grade, his body was already much stronger. After he cast the Light Body Technique, he felt as if he weighed nothing at all.

Combined with the Rogue's Lightness Skill, he drifted lightly into the Feng estate without making a sound.

"Did you feel a gust of chilly wind just now?"

"What chilly wind? You're going soft from standing guard."

"Mm...maybe I am. The grand banquet's only a few days away, and the general said there'll definitely be troublemakers coming to stir things up at the Feng estate. We'd better stay sharp..."

The two guards muttered among themselves, never noticing the faint breeze that had passed by.

"It really works..."

Mu Ye slipped into the shadows, his heart pounding. He slowly calmed himself.

In True Mode, he had to be careful about everything.

With the Light Body Technique, the Rogue's Lightness Skill reached its limit. As he glided along, he was like a breath of wind.

Even a Third-Grade expert of the same level wouldn't be able to detect him.

"I don't need to learn everything about the Feng Family. I'll find out whatever I can..."

Relying on the Light Body Technique, Mu Ye carefully avoided the guards' patrols in the darkness. Before long, he spotted an unusual-looking room.

"Xiyu Pavilion."

Mu Ye's ears twitched. He clung to the roof, moving without making the slightest sound.

A strange noise drifted up, faintly familiar.

"Brother Feng...please, spare me..."

"..."

Mu Ye recognized Tie Wuhua's voice.

"They're in cahoots..."

Mu Ye imagined a whole action-packed movie.

"That's not how you use the Vajra Leg."

"..." Mu Ye.

A little while later.

Mu Ye guessed it had been less than the time it took to burn a stick of incense.

Pathetic.

"Brother Feng, you promised me. When will you let us see your Feng Family's Wind King Leg Divine Aperture Diagram..."

"Heh, there's no rush. The Wind King Leg is one of my Feng Family's greatest arts. The Iron Leg Sect's sincerity still isn't enough for you to learn it..."

"Not enough? Then what else do you want..."

"Simple. The grand banquet is in a few days. I'll need your help with something then..."

They whispered a few things Mu Ye couldn't quite make out, as if they were speaking with their lips pressed together.

The Wind King Leg, a Secret Martial Art of the Feng Family...

A thought stirred in Mu Ye's mind.

It seemed the Iron Leg Sect had sided with the Feng Family to climb even higher.

"My Feng Family has plenty of Secret Martial Arts. Rest assured, if your Iron Leg Sect joins us, your future will be bright..."

"After the grand banquet, my Feng Family will be king of all Taiping City."

Amid the smacking sounds came a few eager gasps and a hearty laugh.

Mu Ye rubbed his chin, pondered for a moment, then slowly drifted away from the room. He cautiously searched a few more rooms, but found nothing. At last, he was about to leave.

"Hm? This tower..."

Mu Ye looked at the tower before him. "Dengtian Pavilion."

The name was a little too domineering.

"My instincts tell me it's dangerous in there..."

Mu Ye pondered. But he hadn't found anything useful, and leaving now would make the whole trip pointless.

If he died, so be it. At worst, he'd wasted the evening.

But if he was discovered, the Feng estate would probably be even more heavily guarded next time he came. In True Mode, the entire game world was dynamically calculated in a way that came much closer to reality.

It was no exaggeration to call it another real world, even if much of it had been gamified.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Mu Ye decided to go in and take his chances.

After watching for a while, he found that only one window was cracked open for ventilation. Two guards patrolled back and forth beside it.

Mu Ye leaped lightly and drifted inside like a breeze.

The tower was lavishly decorated in gold and jade, and had three floors. It held countless books, and guards patrolled every corridor.

But even these patrols had gaps.

Relying on the Light Body Technique and the Rogue's Lightness Skill, Mu Ye moved through the corridors like a shadow, darting everywhere as if no one were there.

Before long.

[You discovered a Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art: Ten Thousand Poison Palm]

[You discovered a Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art: Entangling Silk Hand]

[You discovered a Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art: Cloud Dragon Art]

[You discovered a rare book: Jade Water Heaven Song]

[You...]

"This must be the Feng estate's library..."

Mu Ye marveled to himself. The tower held thousands upon thousands of books, and many sealed scrolls concealed special Divine Aperture Diagrams.

Most of them, however, were ordinary Divine Aperture Secret Martial Arts—not even as good as the Crimson Flame Fist.

Of course, some were powerful. The Entangling Silk Hand, for example, was the Secret Martial Art Shen Qingchan had mentioned—the one used to ambush him in Chishui Village.

As expected of a noble family of the dynasty...their foundations were truly beyond those of ordinary family-run martial schools.

Only the great and famous sects could surpass them.

When he reached the second floor, there were fewer guards, which gave Mu Ye a great deal more freedom.

There were very few Divine Aperture Secret Martial Arts on the second floor, but these were already on par with the Crimson Flame Fist and Vajra Leg.

"Too bad there's still no Secret Martial Art for training the torso. What a pity."

"Hm? A treasure chest!"

Suddenly, Mu Ye's eyes caught a strangely decorated treasure chest tucked into a recess.

"Open the treasure chest!"

Delighted, Mu Ye stayed alert as he began to put the Rogue's lockpicking skills to use.

The chest's lock was rather unusual, but for a Rogue, picking it was just a matter of filling a progress bar. It only took a little time.

Less than fifteen minutes later, the chest opened with a soft click.

A Divine Aperture Diagram radiating a faint glow and a fragrant fruit lay quietly inside.

[You discovered a Divine Aperture Secret Martial Art: Wind King Leg.]

[You discovered a Natural Treasure: Wind Spirit Fruit.]

"I've got it!"

Mu Ye's eyes lit up. The Wind King Leg—was this the Feng Family's signature Secret Martial Art?

A grade above the Vajra Leg!

Mu Ye studied the Divine Aperture Diagram closely. Before long, a prompt appeared.

[You learned a Secret Martial Art: Wind King Leg.]

A smile curled at the corner of Mu Ye's mouth. The Feng Family's Secret Martial Art?

Sorry, I learned it.

"Time to go..."

Mu Ye took the fruit, made a mark, and was just about to leave.

A low laugh drifted up from somewhere behind him:

"Young friend, what superb Lightness Skill. I never imagined you could make it here without even old me noticing..."