Internal Martial Arts Methods

After practicing the Five Animal Frolics and the Shennong Health Cultivation Method, Zhou Yan immediately felt much more comfortable.

Yet a great slab of ice still seemed to lodge over his heart, keeping his body temperature from rising. He remained ice-cold.

"This is caused by an accumulation of yin energy. It hasn't been fully refined, nor has my qi and blood melted it away..."

He felt a headache coming on. This was the drawback of unorthodox paths.

Cultivators of the Orthodox Profound Sects possessed complete, comprehensive legacies. Their cultivation methods advanced the flesh, magic power, and soul in tandem.

Depending on a method's emphasis, a cultivator might sweep aside opponents with a mighty physique, display the power of magic and divine abilities, or overwhelm everything with the pressure of the soul. Each had its own strengths.

But they would not suffer obvious flaws that left the three out of balance.

Unorthodox paths were different. They, too, cultivated all three, but they veered much too sharply down unconventional routes.

The Profound Yin Corpse Refining Technique, for instance, primarily cultivated qi. Its treatment of the flesh and soul was inadequate, touching on them only briefly.

Zhou Yan's current problem was that his qi cultivation and soul were advancing together, while his flesh struggled to keep up.

Had Zhou Yan not obtained the Yakshas Meditation Method through a fortunate coincidence, his problems would likely have extended beyond his flesh.

This was also why cultivators of unorthodox paths found it increasingly difficult to improve as they reached the later stages.

They had to make up for the weaknesses left by their earlier rapid advancement, and the difficulty increased by far more than a few times...

Of course, that did not mean Zhou Yan was so frail that a gust of wind could knock him down.

In fact, his strength, speed, and even the toughness of his flesh already far surpassed those of ordinary people. He could easily lift several hundred pounds.

After all, the first realm of cultivation was the essence blood realm.

Beyond condensing essence blood and magic power, the flesh was also constantly tempered, becoming stronger and stronger.

The cultivation paths of the East emphasized comprehensive development, leaving no obvious weaknesses.

The more advanced a cultivator became, the fewer flaws they had, until those flaws gradually vanished altogether.

Whether they belonged to the Orthodox Profound Sects or followed unorthodox paths, all roads led to the same destination if they reached the end!

"I hope my brother-in-law manages to find something!"

Zhou Yan sighed softly.

"I really don't have what you're looking for."

Jin Mantang looked at Zhou Yan with a wry smile. "Those are internal martial arts methods. Ordinary households don't even get to see them, and those who possess them treasure them beyond measure. What's more, you want a Buddhist internal martial arts method. Even if I had one, I wouldn't dare sell it to you..."

"The Daoists and the Buddhists are both towering behemoths. Rogue cultivators like us can't afford to offend them..."

"Even if someone obtained one through a stroke of luck, they'd hide it away deep. Who would dare casually let it slip..."

"..."

At those words, Zhou Yan grimaced.

He had still underestimated the importance of internal martial arts methods. Jin Mantang dared to sell cultivation methods, yet took this attitude toward internal martial arts. Clearly, they were anything but ordinary.

"Brother Jin, my apologies. I was presumptuous," Zhou Yan said with a slight nod.

Jin Mantang also breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at Zhou Yan, he said, "Brother Zhou, to tell you the truth, cultivation methods are hard to get started with, have all sorts of drawbacks, and progress is slow. To those wealthy households, they're like chicken ribs—tasteless to eat, but a shame to throw away..."

"But internal martial arts methods are different. For people like us to obtain one, we'd have to overcome a thousand hardships and ten thousand obstacles..."

By the end, Jin Mantang gave a helpless sigh.

People like him might seem impossibly lofty to ordinary folk, but they could not even attach themselves to the truly rich and powerful households. Even the guest retainers those households recruited were disciples of renowned sects.

Rogue cultivators like them could only scrape along in the lower and middle strata of society.

Zhou Yan frowned. He realized that he still did not understand enough about many aspects of this world.

"Brother Jin, do you know of any lineage in Shen City surnamed Yue?" Zhou Yan suddenly asked.

"Surnamed Yue?"

Jin Mantang murmured to himself, thought for a moment, then shook his head. "I know all the great lineages in Shen City. None of them are surnamed Yue."

Zhou Yan's brow furrowed tightly as he explained honestly, "There isn't one? Brother Jin, I took a job earlier to subdue a demon at a wealthy Yue household in the inner city. It was a Locust Tree Spirit with several hundred years of cultivation.

"Oh, and that household was extremely wealthy. One of their secondary residences occupied nearly half a street in the inner city. They couldn't possibly be some minor lineage..."

Jin Mantang's eyes widened in disbelief. "A secondary residence occupying nearly half a street? What lineage could that be? Wait, surnamed Yue... could it be..."

As he spoke, he grew even more astonished, nearly jumping to his feet.

Seeing this, Zhou Yan hurriedly asked, "Brother Jin, did you remember something?"

Jin Mantang swallowed, unconsciously lowering his voice. "Brother, if my guess is right, the household you're talking about shouldn't have invited you to exorcise a demon. An illustrious hereditary lineage like that can suppress all evil spirits with its own fortune and its great lineage treasures. A Locust Tree Spirit a few hundred years old wouldn't dare cause trouble at all."

"An illustrious hereditary lineage? Brother Jin, just what kind of lineage deserves that title?" Zhou Yan was deeply surprised as well.

Jin Mantang's expression turned complicated. "The six great lineages under heaven: the Yang Family, the Li Family, the Zhao Family, the Xia Family, the Yue Family, and the Liu Family. Every one of them has a thousand years of heritage and profound foundations. They are true illustrious hereditary lineages."

"A thousand-year lineage!"

Now Zhou Yan was truly astonished.

He had never imagined that thousand-year lineages still existed in this world.

In the world of his previous life, the hereditary aristocratic clans had long since been slaughtered almost out of existence. Even the Kong family, known as the lineage of a sage, was only an empty shell.

But these six great lineages were clearly different. They were genuine hereditary lineages whose legacies stretched back a thousand years, their strength unfathomable.

Jin Mantang looked at Zhou Yan, his gaze carrying something that might have been envy or pity.

Although he did not know why the Yue Family had become connected to Zhou Yan, their instinct as small fry was to avoid getting mixed up in the affairs of such important people.

One careless step could turn them into cannon fodder.

Important people had their ways of doing things, and small fry had their tricks for survival.

There was no free lunch in this world. The more one received, the more likely one would eventually have to sell even one's life in return.

Zhou Yan understood this as well. Coming back to his senses, he cupped his hands toward Jin Mantang.

Jin Mantang nodded in acknowledgment, accepting the gesture.

Afterward, neither of them spoke of the subject again, as though it had never been mentioned.