Fang Han stepped out of True Transmission Courtyard and walked along the bluestone path towards the Library Pavilion.
In the morning, the white mist had not dispersed. When the disciples saw him along the way, they stopped to salute one after another, with awe in their eyes.
He nodded slightly in return, walked steadily, and soon arrived in front of the towering building with flying eaves and brackets, full of ancient charm.
Without stopping, he walked straight through the first floor, spiraled up the wooden stairs, and went straight to the fourth floor.
At the entrance to the fourth floor, a familiar figure leaned behind the sandalwood table. It was Elder Mo who took great care of him.
Elder Mo was holding an ancient volume and was reading it carefully when he heard footsteps and slowly raised his eyes.
Seeing it was Fang Han, a trace of imperceptible gentleness flashed across his weathered eyes, and the corners of his mouth were raised slightly, revealing a faint smile.
"Elder Mo."
Fang Han took a few steps forward, bowed and saluted, with a respectful tone.
"It's Fang Han."
Elder Mo put down the book, his voice was old but deep.
"I haven't seen you for a while. I see that your aura is calm and your cultivation is improving. I am here today, but what kind of technique are you looking for?"
He glanced at Fang Han with the concern of an elder.
"Back to Elder, this disciple came here because of the reward from the sect and obtained the qualification to borrow <Black Tortoise True Art> for free."
Fang Han straightened up and spoke at a steady pace.
Elder Mo heard this, frowned slightly and almost imperceptibly, and said in deep thought:
"<Black Tortoise True Art> is a master-level Horizontal Training technique. It is extremely powerful, but it is also extremely difficult to practice. Fang Han, have you ever practiced other Horizontal Training techniques before?"
His tone was inquiring, more worried.
"This disciple has never practiced any Horizontal Training skills before."
Fang Han shook his head and told the truth.
"You have never been exposed to other Horizontal Training exercises. If you choose the master-level horizontal exercise method for your first practice, the difficulty of practice will be extremely high. Do you know this?"
Elder Mo's face turned solemn, and he spoke slowly and sincerely, showing that he was sincerely considering Fang Han.
"Reply to Elder, the disciple knows the disadvantages, but he wants to try it first."
"If your true power is not enough and you are unable to Beginner stage, then switch to lower-level Horizontal Training skills and proceed step by step."
Fang Han stood and listened quietly. After Elder Mo finished speaking, he said in a deep voice, with firm eyes and no sign of wavering.
Elder Mo stared at Fang Han for a moment, and when he saw that Fang Han had made up his mind, he sighed softly in his heart.
It is not a bad thing for young people to encounter setbacks occasionally. After hitting a wall, they will have more respect for the way of cultivation.
He said nothing more and simply said:
"In that case, please wait here."
After that, he turned around and walked towards the stairs leading to the higher floor.
Above the fourth floor, there are the fifth and sixth floors, which store the core inheritance of the sect.
Elder Mo walked steadily to the massive door on the sixth floor, which was made of black iron mixed with hundreds of refined steel.
He took out an ancient token, pressed it into a groove on the door, and exhaled a little internal energy.
The door made a low "zaza" sound and slowly opened a gap.
Elder Mo ducked in, and after a moment, walked out holding a newly copied booklet with some kind of dark brown animal skin as the cover.
The door then closed.
"This is the manuscript of <Black Tortoise True Art>."
Returning to the fourth floor, Elder Mo handed the secret book to Fang Han and said seriously.
"The sect stipulates that the master-level exercises are of great importance. They can only be read in a specific area of the pavilion and are not allowed to be taken out. It is also strictly prohibited to copy them privately to prevent leakage. You need to remember this."
"Disciple understands."
Fang Han took the booklet with both hands, then found an empty pear wood chair by the window and sat down.
Take a deep breath, calm your mind, and slowly turn to the first page of <Black Tortoise True Art>.
What comes into view is densely packed small regular script, supplemented by several extremely complex diagrams of the human body's qi movement.
It is marked with many difficult and obscure acupoint names and methods of qi and blood circulation.
He studied it word by word and sentence by sentence, and at first he was able to follow the train of thought and understand the true meaning of "Condensing Qi and blood like mercury, moving the heavens around like a tortoise."
However, as the content deepened and many unique movement skills were involved, he gradually found it difficult.
Those words seemed to turn into twisted symbols, and the lines on the map were crisscrossed and circling, making it dazzling.
He suppressed the feeling of dizziness, slowed down, and repeatedly tried to figure out the meaning between the lines.
Sometimes I close my eyes and meditate, trying to construct the trajectory of Qi and blood in my mind.
Sometimes he compares the charts and makes gestures to simulate the flow of energy.
Naihe has never been exposed to the Horizontal Training method and has no experience in the Horizontal Training method. It is difficult to understand the subtleties and mysteries of the master-level method.
I feel like a junior high school student in my previous life who has not yet completed the course, chewing through college textbooks full of terminology and complex derivation.
Each page requires a lot of effort and progress is slow.
Time passes quietly, and the light and shadow inside the Library Pavilion move.
Fang Han The fine beads of sweat oozing out from his forehead are not due to fatigue, but due to his high concentration.
When encountering an incomprehensible hurdle, I pause for a long time, frown, and think over and over again.
Only when you can barely remember the general context can you continue to turn the pages.
After spending several hours, he had just read through this not-so-thick secret book from beginning to end.
'It's not that difficult!'
Closing the booklet, Fang Han leaned back on the chair and let out a long breath.
I just feel that my mind is in chaos. The many magic formulas and diagrams that I had memorized before are now so mixed and intertwined that it is difficult to sort out the clues.
At this point, he was certain that based on his talent in Horizontal Training martial arts.
Not to mention practicing <Black Tortoise True Art>, even trying to understand it is almost impossible.
The threshold for this master-level technique is indeed extremely high.
'Sure enough, you still have to cheat!'
However, Fang Han did not show much frustration in his eyes.
He didn't have much expectations for his Body Tempering Talent. What he really hoped for was the emergence of the "Body Tempering Talent Amplification option" on System Panel.
"System Panel."
Fang Han thought slightly, and a translucent light curtain that only he could see quietly appeared in front of him.
[Host: Fang Han]
[Root Bone Talent Amplification: 128 times (Level Eight Amplification requires 1 million gold)]
[Sword Art Talent Amplification: 128 times (Level Eight Amplification requires 1 million gold)]
[Footwork Talent Amplification: 128 times (Level Eight Amplification requires 1 million gold)]
[Secret Technique Talent Amplification: 64 times (the seventh level of increase requires 10 million silver)]
[Body Tempering Talent Amplification: 0 times (the first level increase requires 10 silver)]
[Possessed Wealth: 19.19 million silver]
"Sure enough, it showed up."
Fang Han glanced quickly at System Panel and saw the new "Body Tempering Talent Amplification" option at a glance.
As expected, when he read through Black Tortoise True Art and memorized it, the option "Body Tempering Talent Amplification" appeared on System Panel.
At this moment, he had abundant wealth, with more than 19 million taels of silver, which was enough to support him in a round of substantial promotion. He decisively started to improve Body Tempering Talent.
"Enable Body Tempering Talent level one increase."
As the thought fell, Henglian Talent Amplification changed.
[Body Tempering Talent Amplification: 0 times → 2 times (the second level increase requires 100 silver)]
The increase took effect instantly, and Fang Han felt that the sluggishness in his mind regarding those obscure words <Black Tortoise True Art> seemed to have faded away.
Although it is not obvious, it is like the ice cracking for the first time, letting in a faint light.
He never stopped and continued to improve.
"Turn on the second level of amplification."
[Body Tempering Talent Amplification: 2 times → 4 times (Third-Level Amplification requires 1000 silver)]
"Turn on Third-Level Amplification."
[Body Tempering Talent Amplification: 4 times → 8 times (the fourth level increase requires 10,000 silver)]
The improvement continues. Every time a new level of increase is opened, the required wealth increases tenfold, and the increase multiple also doubles.
"Level 4 increase, start."
[Body Tempering Talent Amplification: 8 times → 16 times (the fifth level increase requires 100,000 silver)]
"Level 5 increase, start."
[Body Tempering Talent Amplification: 16 times → 32 times (the sixth level of increase requires 1 million silver)]
"Level 6 amplification, start."
[Body Tempering Talent Amplification: 32 times → 64 times (seventh level increase requires 10 million silver)]
At this point, Body Tempering Talent Amplification has reached sixty-four times.
As the increase multiplied to 64 times, the originally intricate <Black Tortoise True Art> qi map in Fang Han's mind now had a faint thread to follow, and many of the key points were no longer as difficult to decipher as a heavenly book.
And this is not the end.
"Turn on level seven amplification."
[Body Tempering Talent Amplification: 64 times → 128 times (Level Eight Amplification requires 1 million gold)]
Body Tempering Talent Amplification reaches one hundred and twenty-eight times.
With the blessing of one hundred and twenty-eight times Body Tempering Talent Amplification, an unprecedented sense of transparency came to mind.
Things that were previously incomprehensible were instantly understood.
Regarding the Horizontal Training technique, he seemed to have an innate intuition.
However, the improvement only ends there.
There are only 8.07 million silver left in wealth, but the next upgrade requires 1 million gold, which is 100 million silver. The current wealth is no longer enough to continue to improve.
Fortunately, with the current Body Tempering Talent, it should be enough to practice this master-level Horizontal Training technique.
"Now start reading from the beginning."
Fang Han opened the album again and scanned it word by word.
A wonderful change has occurred.
Those previously difficult and obscure meridians running routes and qi and blood transportation methods came into view again at this moment. Although they still felt profound, profound and mysterious, they were no longer clueless.
The profound meaning between the lines and the direction of the lines in the map seem to have been combed by invisible hands and become layered.
He can understand the principles of movement, feel the core of "condensing Qi and blood like mercury, and lying down like a turtle" Artistic Conception, and can even vaguely deduce the possible effects and dangers of some exercise routes.
This is a qualitative leap.
From completely unable to understand, to being able to initially interpret and grasp the essence.
Unlike before where it was difficult to get involved, now he can easily immerse himself in it.
Forgetting the passage of time, I occasionally traced my fingers on my knees, simulating a certain flow of energy and blood.
The sun is setting outside the window, and the orange-red afterglow shines into the pavilion, coating the old bookshelves with a layer of warm gold.
Library Pavilion became increasingly quiet, with only the rustling of book pages and the faint sound of sect bells ringing in the distance.
Fang Han finally came back from the deep realization and gently closed the booklet. The content was roughly understood, but the details still needed to be memorized over and over again.
He stood up and straightened his robe, holding <Black Tortoise True Art> in his hand, and walked towards Elder Mo.
Hearing the footsteps, Elder Mo raised his eyes and saw that it was Fang Han. His eyes naturally fell on the animal skin booklet in Fang Han's hand.
"Have you finished reading?"
Elder Mo put down the book, his tone was a bit casual as an elder would treat a junior, and the corner of his mouth curled up into a smile that was not a smile.
"How is it? Is this <Black Tortoise True Art> more difficult than expected?"
His words were filled with good-natured ridicule, and he obviously believed that Fang Han was probably retreating from the difficulties after reading this, and he could better understand the intention of his previous admonishment.