Watching High Grade Combat Methods

After wandering around for quite a while, Su Yi had gotten a rough look at the Nanfeng Research Institute.

It truly lived up to its reputation as a top-tier institute. The sheer range of its work was breathtaking.

Lyu Zhen asked with a light laugh, "So, how about staying here to do research?"

Lyu Zhen had spent all that time showing Su Yi around to set up that question. He still thought Su Yi was well suited to research and hoped the laboratories would spark his enthusiasm for it.

He refused to believe anyone could see this much research and remain unmoved.

Research was the most wonderful thing in the world. Exploring the unknown was intoxicating.

Su Yi cleared his throat. "Grandmaster, that was quite a long lead-up! But I'll pass. Don't worry, I'll spend more time studying the Tempering Method when I can. Cultivation still has to come first."

He really hadn't expected Lyu Zhen to keep trying. The man had taken him through nearly two hours of experiments just to persuade him to stay and do research.

Lyu Zhen was disappointed, but he didn't press him. Su Yi would still study the Tempering Method, and that was enough.

Perhaps he would change his mind once his cultivation hit a bottleneck.

"I'll arrange a pass for you later. If you change your mind, come find me. I'm at the institute most of the time.

Let's exchange phone numbers too. Call ahead before you come—I might not be free."

After they exchanged numbers, Lyu Zhen said, "Come on. I'll collect some samples and keep them on file. We'll see whether we can learn anything from them."

"Sure."

An hour later, the sample collection was complete.

Su Yi had provided blood, hair, some bone powder, and finally a little bone marrow.

Once everything was collected, Lyu Zhen said, "That's it. Your teacher and his wife are waiting outside. Come by when you have time."

Come by to get sliced up again?

It hadn't hurt him much, and he would recover quickly, but the thought still made Su Yi uneasy.

He said a polite goodbye and walked out through the passage. Wu Kuishan and Lyu Fengrou were waiting at the entrance.

"Teacher, ma'am. Sorry to keep you waiting."

Lyu Fengrou nodded without speaking. She was curious, though. On the phone, Lyu Zhen had praised Su Yi repeatedly and told her to take good care of him—and not to let Wu Kuishan lead him astray.

Her father rarely praised anyone like that, yet he hadn't explained why. She decided to ask Wu Kuishan what made this student so special once they got home.

Wu Kuishan waved it off. "Did they finish collecting the samples?"

"They got everything."

Wu Kuishan asked no more questions. As long as Su Yi was all right, that was enough.

Back at the Mentor Dormitory, Lyu Fengrou went into the villa first. Wu Kuishan turned to Su Yi. "Now that the Bone Marrow issue is settled, you should hurry and temper your spine.

Otherwise, your strength will be severely limited until you reach the high stage of Third Rank."

"Understood, Teacher."

Su Yi had been thinking the same thing. His untempered spine did limit his combat strength.

He was about to say goodbye when he remembered that he still needed High Grade Combat Methods to repair the Book of Knowledge.

"Teacher, could I look through some High Grade Combat Methods first?"

Wu Kuishan frowned. Why had Su Yi suddenly taken an interest in them? He couldn't use them before reaching the Middle Grades. Had something happened at the institute?

He cautioned, "High Grade Combat Methods were developed for Middle Grade martial artists. Are you sure you want to practice them?"

Su Yi quickly shook his head. "Not practice them. Just look at them."

Just look?

Wu Kuishan thought for a moment but couldn't see what Su Yi hoped to gain. Still, there was no harm in reading the theory as long as he didn't try to practice it.

"What sort of Battle Arts do you want to see?"

Su Yi hesitated. He didn't know how many he would need to bring the repair progress to twenty percent.

But before reaching the Middle Grades, he couldn't easily enter the area that housed High Grade Combat Methods.

He considered it. Four different methods should be enough. If not, he could visit Grandmaster again. If he said it was to continue researching the Tempering Method, Lyu Zhen would probably agree.

"Four different kinds of cultivation methods or Battle Arts!"

Wu Kuishan's pupils contracted slightly. Four different kinds? Something was definitely going on.

That meant Su Yi wasn't interested in any particular method or Battle Art. But why?

If he didn't intend to practice them, was he planning to create his own?

Wu Kuishan dismissed the almost impossible notion. Surely not.

After a moment's thought, he said, "How about Skywalk Step, Body Forging Art, Azure Sky Sword Art, and the Tempering Method's Internal Organs Chapter? If those won't do, I can swap one out for a Leg Technique."

He had chosen methods suited to Su Yi once he reached Fourth Grade. The Internal Organs Chapter, meanwhile, was essential for breaking through to Fourth Grade. Whatever secrets Su Yi had, Wu Kuishan was still his teacher.

Everyone had secrets, himself included. And since the old man had said he would know in time, Su Yi must have revealed his secret at the institute, where it was being kept confidential for now.

If so, Wu Kuishan would leave it be.

Su Yi hadn't expected it to go so smoothly. Wu Kuishan hadn't asked a single question. Instead, he had thought carefully about what would help him.

A movement technique, body forging, swordsmanship, and a cultivation method—all suited to him.

Su Yi was genuinely moved. Wu Kuishan was a good teacher.

"Thank you, Teacher. Those four will do!"

"Come here at nine tomorrow morning."

After Su Yi left, Lyu Fengrou came out of the villa. "You really do spoil this student," she said with a smile.

Wu Kuishan smiled back and replied unhurriedly, "They're only a few High Grade Combat Methods. Su Yi knows what he's doing."

That piqued Lyu Fengrou's interest, and she began asking about Su Yi.

Wu Kuishan took his time describing his impressions of the student.

The next day.

Nine in the morning.

Su Yi arrived at the villa right on time.

When Wu Kuishan opened the door, Su Yi saw a stack of materials in the living room. He fought back his excitement and kept himself from laughing aloud.

Wu Kuishan pointed to them. "The materials for all four methods are here. But I'll remind you again: read them, don't practice them.

If there's anything you don't understand, ask me. Once you reach Fourth Grade, you can practice them on your own."

"I understand, Teacher."

Su Yi nodded and picked up the Tempering Method's Internal Organs Chapter. Wu Kuishan began explaining it beside him.

"Practicing the Internal Organs Chapter is essentially a process of building bridges. 'Five Viscera and Six Bowels' is a collective term. The Five Viscera are the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys.

Definitions of the Six Bowels vary somewhat. Usually, they refer to the gallbladder, stomach, large intestine, small intestine, bladder, and Triple Burner.

But the Triple Burner concerns Sixth Grade. To break through to Fourth Grade, you only need to build five bridges connecting the Five Viscera. Complete one bridge, and you've reached Fourth Grade.

Complete all five, and you're at Fourth Grade Mid. Then you temper the Five Viscera, starting with the heart, one of the body's most important internal organs.

Once the heart is tempered, you reach the Fourth Grade High Stage. To reach Fourth Grade Peak, you must finish tempering the remaining Five Viscera."

Su Yi read the Internal Organs Chapter as he listened, nodding now and then.

Cultivation in the Middle Grades was no longer part of basic instruction; mentors taught it individually. His own understanding of Fourth and Fifth Grade cultivation was hazy. What he remembered most clearly was Fang Ping building all five Heaven-Earth Bridges at once and breaking through to Fourth Grade Mid.

He hadn't paid much attention to the order in which the Five Viscera and Six Bowels were tempered. Wu Kuishan's explanation filled in a lot of gaps.

Wu Kuishan paused, then continued. "At Fifth Grade, you temper the Six Bowels—or rather, every part of the internal organs apart from the Five Viscera. By Fifth-Rank Peak, you could say the whole body has been tempered except for the skull.

As for Sixth Grade... never mind. That's still too far off for you. We'll discuss it when you reach Fifth Grade."

Seeing Su Yi put down the Internal Organs Chapter, Wu Kuishan stopped there. Su Yi had yet to reach the Middle Grades; who knew when he would reach Sixth Grade?

He might have advanced quickly through the Lower Three Grades because of his Third Bone Tempering, but the Middle Three Grades would not be so easy.

Su Yi had finished reading the Internal Organs Chapter. It covered how to temper the internal organs, the meridians through which vital energy flowed while the bridges were being built, and more.

Its function was much like that of the Tempering Method: one tempered the internal organs, while the other tempered bones.

Of course, Su Yi hadn't forgotten why he was reading these methods.

18.98%

An increase of 0.75% delighted him. He quickly picked up Skywalk Step and began reading.

Su Yi knew Wu Kuishan was watching him, but he wasn't worried about what the man might notice. Once the Tempering Method he had developed through Deduction became known, Wu Kuishan would assume he had been looking for inspiration.

It was the best explanation. What else could Wu Kuishan possibly think?

Wu Kuishan noticed Su Yi's delight. His eyes narrowed slightly, but he said nothing.

As Su Yi eagerly opened Skywalk Step, Wu Kuishan said evenly, "Once you reach the Middle Grades, you can also continue training your Stake Standing.

You've practiced Cloud Step before, and your Stake Standing reached the Void Standing Realm long ago. That should make Skywalk Step much easier to learn.

But after you reach Fourth Grade, Body Forging Art will do more to improve your combat strength."

"Teacher, could I practice both?"

Raising his vital energy would improve his physique, but Su Yi didn't know how much more Body Forging Art would help. He wanted to try it first.

Wu Kuishan gave him an exasperated look. "Are you sure you'll have time to practice both? More Battle Arts aren't necessarily better. What matters is mastering them. You'll also be learning a High Grade sword art."

"I just want to try, Teacher. And I think I can manage it."

Su Yi wasn't worried about the time it would take. He could use Optimization. His answer was full of confidence.

"Suit yourself. You can make your own judgments. You won't reach Fourth Grade overnight, so you have plenty of time to think it over."

Wu Kuishan didn't know where that confidence came from, but Su Yi was an adult with ideas and a will of his own.

He could guide Su Yi, but he couldn't control him.