Eight Forms of Body and Spirit, Second Refinement Peak

The next morning, at six o'clock, the sky outside was just beginning to break.

"First, serve tea."

"Present the invitation, then serve tea again."

"Accept the tea, a third serving."

Chen Yuque sang the ritualistic phrases in a drawn-out tone. After the three cups of tea were served, the invitation to become a disciple was presented. With that, the ceremony was complete.

In the quiet room, there were no distinguished guests, no celebratory music or lion dances. It was simply three cups of plain tea.

"It should have been more formal," the old man said, holding the invitation the young man had handed him. He rubbed his fingers over the words 'Zhang Fusheng' and smiled, "But Jiangzhou City isn't the ancestral home of our lineage. Next year, when we return to Chongyang City, I'll host a banquet and invite some old friends to witness it."

Chongyang City was about three to four hundred kilometers from Jiangzhou. Both were within the Golden Province, but one was a small city, while the other was one of the seven medium-sized cities in the province.

The entire Golden Province had only one large city and seven medium-sized cities. There were, however, an unusually large number of small cities, around sixty or so.

"You don't need to pay respects to the ancestor's portrait yet. We'll go to Chongyang City next year, and I'll take you to pay your respects in person."

Hong Tianbao tapped Zhang Fusheng's forehead for the third time. Then, his smile faded, and he tapped the air with his knuckles, producing a "tick!" sound.

Zhang Fusheng found himself back in the hellish mental illusion.

"The Great Sun Illuminating Seventy-Two Great Snow Mountains True Scripture." The full name of the cultivation method was a bit difficult to say, so the old man simplified it slightly and said softly, "Actually, I wasn't entirely wrong. This method has three volumes. The first volume is 'Great Sun Illuminating Seventy-Two Great Snow Mountains.' If you add the second volume, it becomes 'Immeasurable Heaven Great Sun Illuminating Seventy-Two Great Snow Mountains.'"

"Adding the third volume completes the entire scripture, which is thirty-six characters long."

"Today, I will teach you the first volume. This method is a great secret of life and death, and will only be taught within the Spiritual Realm."

So, this mental illusion was called the Spiritual Realm.

Zhang Fusheng thought to himself, as he performed the grand kowtow and listened intently to his Master explaining the cultivation method.

He gradually became immersed, as if entranced, sometimes clapping his hands, sometimes frowning, sometimes looking delighted—all of it was an act.

He couldn't immerse himself at all.

Out of ten sentences, he could understand about one, and he had to force himself to look like he had a profound realization!

What a苦也!

An hour later, Hong Tianbao finished explaining the cultivation method, released the Spiritual Realm, and left, leaving Zhang Fusheng alone in the quiet room to ponder.

Ponder what!

He could only cram the entire volume of the cultivation method into his memory. Every time he tried to think about it deeply, his head would spin.

Fortunately, the initial content of this [Great Sun Illuminating Seventy-Two Great Snow Mountains True Scripture] wasn't too difficult to understand. Otherwise...

"This cultivation method isn't just a simple cultivation technique; it also complements the Dense White Bone Contemplation. To be precise, it completes the Dense White Bone Contemplation."

Zhang Fusheng could understand this point. It was unlikely that for a tuition fee of one hundred thousand yuan, his Master would truly teach him the sect's fundamental meditation technique.

The meditation technique he had learned before was incomplete. Although it could truly cultivate to the [Breaking Limits] level, it was ultimately not whole.

With this Great Sun Scripture as a supplement, when visualizing, in addition to seeing himself as white bones, he also visualized the great sun shining on all directions above his head and the seventy-two snow mountains below him, freezing the land.

Furthermore, the completed White Bone Meditation gained the 'Eight Forms of Body and Spirit,' which were eight different self-visualization states, progressing layer by layer, with increasingly wondrous effects.

These were: the Luminous Form, the Newly Dead Form, the Giant Form, the Blood-Soaked Form, the Rotting Form, the Beast-Eaten Form, the Scattered Bones Form, and finally, the [Ancient Tomb Form].

When linked together, they represented the entire process of a person's life, death, and burial in a tomb. Each form had its own mystical properties.

"Luminous Form, I have already achieved this. My bones are emitting light. According to the complete White Bone Meditation, this can gradually improve my physique until it forms the special bone structure of [Dead Man's Bones]."

"As for the remaining seven forms..."

He gave a wry smile. Of the Eight Forms of Body and Spirit in the White Bone Meditation, only the first form, Luminous Form, and the second form, Newly Dead Form, were somewhat normal.

For example, the third form, Giant Form, involved visualizing oneself as a 'giant' swollen from decay, with black hair entwined with grass roots and exhaling rotten mist.

This wasn't just simple visualization; like the bones emitting light, it would truly manifest in reality!

Imagining himself as a 'rotting giant,' Zhang Fusheng shivered.

Damn it.

He had definitely joined a demonic sect, and his Master was definitely an old demon!

He gave a wry smile and collected his thoughts.

"This first volume directly targets the [Furnace Realm]."

Zhang Fusheng pondered, "What level is the Furnace Realm? Martial Arts Master? Or something more powerful?"

He picked out the parts he could understand and recall, observing them carefully. Gradually, he did gain some insights.

At the very least, he now knew how to enter the Second Refinement after the First Refinement.

"Using the Breathing Technique as a medium, guide the Mysterious Factor along the path described in the cultivation method throughout the body."

He stood in the Lotus Flower Stance, his breathing like spring thunder, gradually immersing himself in cultivation.

One hour, two hours.

After two hours.

"I've really improved, my strength has increased. Half a tael?"

He rubbed his forehead. At this rate, even if he practiced for eight hours a day, he would only gain at most two taels of strength.

And reaching Perfection in the First Refinement required an additional five hundred jin of strength!

It would take approximately...

Seven years!

Seven years!

"Damn it, what a waste of time. Pact, give me a boost!"

He communicated with the ancestral aperture between his brows, activating the dim Pact. Within it was stored fifty years of body-tempering time from Elder Zhong—to be precise, cultivation time.

"This time the Pact needs over two months to cool down? Is it because the transaction content has increased, or the transaction gains have increased?"

Zhang Fusheng mused, but he didn't care—Star Beast Meat could directly reduce the cooldown.

Fifty years of cultivation time surged into him.

[Year 1, I used the Great Sun Illuminating Seventy-Two Great Snow Mountains True Scripture to temper my body, and I made progress.] [Year 2, I made progress.] [Year 3, I made progress.] ... [Year 7, I reached Perfection in the First Refinement, my hand strength reaching twelve hundred jin. I continued to try and strive.] [Year 8, limited by my inferior bone structure, I was stuck at a bottleneck, making no progress.] [Year 9, I still made no progress.] [Year 10] ... [Year 16, through accumulation, I finally broke through the bottleneck, integrating the Mysterious Factor into a deeper layer of my skin and membranes, becoming a Second Refinement Martial Artist!] [My strength surged by another five hundred jin!] [Year 17, after entering the Second Refinement, I found that my bone structure's limitations were becoming increasingly severe.] [Year 18, I made slight progress.] [Year 19, I made slight progress.] ... [Year 38, after countless hardships, spending a full twenty-one years, I finally reached the peak of the Second Refinement!] [Now, my hand strength exceeds two thousand jin, and my skin and membranes are extremely tough.] [I continued to try and strive to temper my body and cultivate the Great Sun Scripture.] [Year 39, as expected, I fell into a bottleneck again, making no progress.] [Year 40.] ... [Year 49, trapped by my physical bottleneck, I remained stuck at the peak of the Second Refinement. I finally accepted the fact that I was mediocre.] [But I am optimistic. At least I reached the Second Refinement. Many people are stuck in the First Refinement their entire lives, or even never manage to grasp a Breathing Technique.] [Year 50, I had a flash of inspiration, and then nothing happened.] [No matter how brilliant the flash of inspiration, it couldn't improve my bone structure, nor could it allow the Mysterious Factor to penetrate the deepest layer of my skin and membranes, nor could it reach the Third Refinement.]

Over fifty years, the memories of daily body tempering and cultivation surged like a tide.

Accompanying them was a surge in strength.

One thousand jin, fifteen hundred jin, twenty-two hundred jin!

His bones and muscles rumbled like thunder, his fists heavy as steel buckets.

Zhang Fusheng exhaled a breath, as if expelling fifty years of accumulated filth from his internal organs, as if expelling the ravages of time.

"There are still sixty years of cultivation time left for the meditation technique and breathing technique, one portion of each."

"Such a waste."

As he pondered, he silently began practicing the Tiger Roar Fist. Dust gathered into the form of a tiger, emitting a low growl that echoed through the quiet room on the fifth floor.

"If only my bone structure were better, much better, I would have at least broken through to the Third Refinement by now, or even the Fourth or Fifth Refinement!"

"Bone structure. Bone structure!"

The desire for a better set of bone structure had never been stronger than it was now.

He finished a set of Tiger Roar Fist and assumed the finishing pose.

He struck his palm against his abdomen, and the tiger's head roared. Dust gathered into visible circular ripples that spread outwards, striking the walls.

Zhang Fusheng stood still for a long time.

Knock, knock, knock.

The sound of knocking came, and his second senior sister entered.

"Little junior brother, did you look at the list I sent you yesterday? Who did you choose?"

As she spoke, Chen Yuque looked Zhang Fusheng up and down, frowning slightly.

In just two or three hours, how could she feel that her little junior brother... seemed to have changed again?

Zhang Fusheng contracted his muscles and bones, concealing his strength of over two thousand jin.

The progress of his meditation technique and breathing technique could be explained by his comprehension, but what about his actual body-tempering cultivation progress?

His own innate talent was right there.

"I've chosen."

Zhang Fusheng nodded.

"I want this person named Chen Nuanyu to settle her debt. But I also want to ask about her and another person, the boss of the construction company in District Four, Zhu Dashan."

He paused and explained, "One is a classmate from my school, and the other is an uncle of mine."

"Zhu Dashan?"

Chen Yuque thought for a moment.

"I don't really remember him. His debt should be very small. As for that Chen Nuanyu..."

She smiled slightly.

"Ah, she's a little genius who took a shortcut. She borrowed nearly twenty million in total, and with interest, she probably owes thirty million now. Since you're interested, I'll leave the debt collection to you."

"According to the rules, you have autonomy. You can decide to a certain extent whether to waive part of the interest and whether to extend the repayment period. If you want to 'eat' her, I can teach you how."

Chen Yuque winked at Zhang Fusheng and grinned, revealing two small tiger teeth.