Limit-Breaking

Far from the county town's clamor, only the wind, insects, and his own footsteps remained by his ears.

Chen Yue took out the Clam Knife and began walking while punching with his left hand and swinging the blade with his right. Insights into the three martial arts streamed endlessly into his mind, then became Chen Yue's instincts.

Before he knew it, the low, dilapidated outline of Pearl Village had appeared faintly in the distance.

Chen Yue slowly stopped, put away the Clam Knife, and ceased punching. He closed his eyes, sensing the entirely different power surging through his body, then focused on the panel in his mind:

[Iron Mountain Fist (Limit-Breaking)

Iron Mountain Saber (Limit-Breaking)

Roaming Mountains and Rivers (Limit-Breaking)]

In barely over an hour of walking, punching, and saber practice, all three martial arts had directly entered the Limit-Breaking state!

Within the panel, Iron Mountain Fist, Iron Mountain Saber, and Roaming Mountains and Rivers followed the progression: Beginner → Minor Accomplishment → Major Accomplishment → Perfection → Limit-Breaking. Every stage had clear proficiency requirements.

The Wave-Turning Breathing Technique he had cultivated before, however, progressed from the first level → second level → third level → fourth level (deduced) → fifth level (deduced). There was no such thing as Limit-Breaking.

"Perhaps..."

Chen Yue mused to himself. The Wave-Turning Breathing Technique was incomplete to begin with. The fourth and fifth levels were filled in through the panel's deductions, so in essence, it had already broken its limits to some extent.

The three arts from Iron Mountain Hall, on the other hand, are complete foundational inheritances. Once cultivated to perfection, they can still be deduced into the Limit-Breaking state and advance to a higher level.

Chen Ye stood quietly, his eyes half-closed.

At that moment, the fierce, explosive force and principles of exertion of Iron Mountain Fist; the heavy, decisive strikes and blade trajectories of Iron Mountain Saber; the nimble transformations and footwork mysteries of Roaming Mountains and Rivers...

They were no longer merely memories and understanding. It felt as though he had practiced them countless times, as though they had long been branded deep into his bones, muscles, and neural responses.

With the slightest movement of intent, fist, blade, and footwork flowed naturally, seamless and unobstructed.

"Phew..."

Chen Yue slowly exhaled a long breath. The sharp gleam in his eyes withdrew, leaving behind an incomparable steadiness and confidence.

If breaking through to the Skin Refining Realm with the Wave-Turning Breathing Technique had merely given him strength and resilient skin beyond ordinary people—a brute with power but no idea how to use it—

Then now, having mastered three complete martial arts at the Limit-Breaking level, Chen Yue was a true Skin Refining Realm martial artist. He possessed the techniques, methods, and experience to bring his strength into perfect play.

No, he was even stronger!

According to Ma Jun, the complete Iron Mountain Fist inheritance was enough to support a practitioner's breakthrough into the Muscle Refining Realm.

That meant that in terms of technique, Chen Yue had already surpassed the scope of an ordinary Skin Refining Realm martial artist and reached the level of a Muscle Refining Realm martial artist. Only his foundational strength still fell short.

Suppressing the power he had just gained, Chen Yue resumed his usual image as a quiet, unassuming Pearl Household man. He buried the loose silver from his pocket somewhere, slung the bag of medicine over his back, and headed toward Pearl Village's crude entrance.

Two burly men in the standard short jackets of the Sea Shark Gang guarded the village gate. They were leaning idly against the wooden fence. Seeing Chen Yue return so late, one of them, a man with triangular eyes, immediately stepped forward to stop him, his tone unfriendly. "Why are you only getting back now?"

Chen Yue lowered his head, his voice carrying just the right amount of fatigue. "In reply to you, big brother, I went to get medicine for my father. The doctor I know had gone out on a house call, so I waited a long time for him to return. That delayed me." As he spoke, he slightly raised the wrapped medicine packet in his hand.

The triangular-eyed man scrutinized him suspiciously for a few moments, then looked over the medicine packet. Finding nothing unusual, he impatiently waved him off. "Fine, fine, get the hell inside! Come back this late again, and watch your hide!"

"Yes, yes. Thank you, big brother." Chen Yue answered submissively and hurried into the village.

Behind him came the teasing voice of the other guard. "Why waste words on a Pearl Folk trash? Get over here already—the game isn't finished..."

When he pushed open the creaking, battered wooden door, the anxious faces of Father Chen and Mother Chen immediately greeted him. Seeing Chen Yue return safely, both of them breathed a sigh of relief. Mother Chen could not help murmuring, "Heavens bless us."

"A-Yue, why were you gone so long? Nothing happened, did it?" Father Chen leaned against the crude bed, his face still pale, but his eyes full of concern.

"Nothing happened, Father. A few things just held me up." Chen Yue set the medicine packet on the table and began lighting the fire to decoct the medicine.

The cramped room filled with the bitter scent of herbs, yet for some reason, it brought a trace of comfort.

After serving his father the medicinal soup and carefully changing the medicine on his injured leg, Chen Yue waited until the furrow in his father's brow eased slightly before sitting down on a low stool beside the bed.

"Father, Mother," Chen Yue said in a lowered voice, though his tone held an unprecedented seriousness. "What I went to do in the city today is done."

A glimmer flashed through Chen Shan's clouded eyes. "The martial hall... accepted you?"

"Mhm. I learned a few moves to defend myself."

Chen Yue nodded without explaining the process. "And I also looked into something else."

He paused, lowering his voice even further until it was almost a whisper. "I want to take the Martial Examination."

"The Martial Examination?" Mother Chen jumped in fright, nearly dropping the needle and thread in her hands.

Chen Yue nodded firmly, his gaze bright as he looked at his parents. "Only by earning honors through the Martial Examination can we completely cast off this Pearl Household registration. Only then can our family truly live a good life—without having to bow to the Sea Shark Gang, without fearing that one day we will fail to gather pearls and be thrown into the sea."

"But this must never be mentioned to anyone in the village."

Father Chen and Mother Chen were so shocked by their son's bold idea that they could not speak for a time. After a long while, Chen Shan finally let out a heavy sigh. Worry and fear intertwined across his aged face.

"A-Yue, I've heard of the Martial Examination too. You have to get on the arena and fight with real blades and real weapons! They say people are beaten to death or crippled every year... It's far too dangerous!

"And we're Pearl Divers. Would the authorities even let us take it? If... if the Sea Shark Gang finds out you have such thoughts, they'll never spare you! How can Pearl Households like us possibly fight them..."

Mother Chen's eyes reddened even more. She grabbed Chen Yue's hand, her voice trembling. "A-Yue, we don't seek great wealth or glory. We only want peace and safety... Your mother is truly afraid..."

Chen Yue clasped his mother's rough, cold hand in return, then looked at his father. There was not the slightest wavering in his eyes. "Father, Mother, I know it's dangerous, and I know the Sea Shark Gang is powerful. But if we do nothing, we can only remain like this forever!

"How did Father's leg get injured? How was Uncle Old Zhou's family bullied? More than half the pearls we gather have to be handed over to them, and what remains is not even enough for us to eat our fill or dress warmly! Is this kind of peace truly peace?"

Chen Yue's voice deepened. "The Martial Examination is a rule set by the imperial court. It is the only path people like us have to change our fate openly and honorably! No matter how dangerous it is, it is still better than being trampled into the mud for an entire lifetime!"

Silence fell over the room. Only the occasional popping spark from the stove made a faint crackling sound.

Father Chen and Mother Chen looked at the determination and light in their son's eyes. It was a radiance they had never seen in the eyes of the younger generation of Pearl Households.

At last, Chen Shan nodded with difficulty, his voice hoarse. "You've grown up. You have ideas of your own now. Since you've made up your mind, your mother and I won't stop you. Just be sure... be sure to be careful! Outside, don't mention a single word!"