High House, Built From Above

"Old Huang, do you take me, Wang Ju, for a fool?"

"Who knows if your brain is just clouded by lust?"

Wang Ju let out a cold snort. "I, Wang Ju, can swear to the heavens: if this matter has anything to do with me, may I be struck by lightning and die a miserable death!"

"Furthermore, I, Wang Ju, am no fool."

Only after Wang Ju finished speaking did Huang He calm down slightly.

Realizing that his anger had clouded his judgment and caused him to lose his composure.

The main reason was that the succession of events had left him truly vexed.

Even so, Wang Ju remained a suspect.

After all, this old fox had a truly wretched reputation.

The two had originally been discussing major affairs, but they ended up parting on bad terms.

Just like that, a rift formed between the two family heads.

The next day.

Lu Li appeared at the Martial Academy.

He was practicing the Azure Wave Palm.

Suddenly, he heard a chorus of exclamations.

Lu Li followed the crowd's gaze.

He saw Huang Haitao staggering toward them, his face as pale as paper and his breathing shallow; it was clear he had suffered severe injuries.

"What are you looking at? Get back to your training! If you keep staring, get out of here!" Huang Haitao was extremely depressed.

After this incident, he could forget about being valued by the Huang Family or entering their inner circle.

Not only that, his monthly stipend of two hundred taels had been cut in half, and he had been relentlessly mocked by the other martial arts instructors.

He had lost all face!

Originally, he had hoped that when the Fifth Young Master handed over the Inner Qi realm martial arts manual and medicinal pills, he would be able to bask in the glory and see his own status rise accordingly.

But the winds of fate are unpredictable; everything was ruined, and he, Huang Haitao, was destined to remain an outsider.

He was filled with resentment.

He felt helpless regarding the Fifth Young Master's stupidity, and as for the sudden appearance of the Tendon-Refining martial artist, he wished he could eat his flesh, drink his blood, and tear him into ten thousand pieces!

He sat on a recliner, gritting his teeth in fury.

"Instructor Huang is a powerhouse in the Tendon-Refining Realm. Who on earth could have beaten him into such a state?"

"Instructor Huang must have encountered a true expert. To be able to beat him like this, only the great families could manage it, right?"

"Has the Huang Family encountered a formidable enemy?"

The crowd whispered among themselves, finding it hard to believe.

In their understanding, a Tendon-Refining Realm martial artist was a high and mighty existence, unreachable and beyond their station!

To be able to beat Instructor Huang like this—just how strong must the attacker be?

For commoners like them, such a person was someone they could never hope to measure up to in their entire lives!

Li Qing and his two companions also looked horrified, unable to believe that they had encountered such an expert and still managed to return alive.

Noticing Huang Haitao's foul expression, the crowd dared not even breathe loudly, and they quickly and obediently averted their gazes.

Soon, the end of the month arrived.

[Martial Art: Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist (Tendon-Refining Realm 0/900) - Practice once a day, completion in 70 years...]

Lu Li had broken through the Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist to the Tendon-Refining Realm.

The tendons and vessels within his body expanded once more. As Lu Li pinched his skin and flesh, he could clearly feel the thick, robust tendons beneath, like coiled dragons lurking within his muscles.

Once unleashed, they would surely erupt with immense, overwhelming power!

The Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist was a cut above the Tiger-Subduing Fist.

Each stage of improvement granted an additional five hundred jin of strength.

Lu Li's strength had now surged to a staggering four thousand five hundred jin.

That was half again as much as before!

With both martial arts combined, Lu Li was confident that even against an Organ-Refining Realm martial artist, he could fight to a draw!

Lu Li suddenly threw a light punch; the wind of his fist vibrated, and the immense force caused a sonic boom in the air.

It was like the roar of a giant elephant, earth-shattering and heaven-shaking.

Lu Li's entire body was like a powder keg; once ignited, he would be unstoppable!

They say the path of martial arts is arduous, as difficult as ascending to the heavens.

Yet, it had only been a full month since he reached this stage.

Thinking back to the beginning, Lu Li couldn't help but feel a bit carried away.

But the very next moment, he suppressed this emotion.

"No, I cannot get cocky now!"

"Although I can walk sideways in Changfeng County, looking at the Great Yan or even the entire continent, I am still nothing."

"There are Xiantian martial artists who can project their internal energy, possessing endless means."

"There are Grandmaster martial artists who leap high and move freely, their immense power enough to move mountains with their bare hands."

"And there are Great Grandmasters who, with a mere gesture, can change the winds and clouds, suppressing an entire nation!"

"There are even more powerful Immortal realms; with a single thought, they can turn seas into mulberry fields, dim the sun and moon, and even emperors must prostrate themselves and kowtow in worship."

"The hierarchy of martial arts is strict and unforgiving."

"To achieve true transcendence, one must become a top-tier powerhouse."

"Where am I even now? I can't even compare to the experts of the Incense Fragrance Sect, so how can I speak of being transcendent?"

"Being so smug and self-satisfied is simply unacceptable."

Lu Li took a deep breath, pressing down the agitation in his heart, and regained his calm, introverted and steady demeanor.

The next day, he arrived at the Huang Family to report to Huang Haitao that he had completed his training in the Azure Wave Palm.

At this time, Li Qing and the other two had also finished their training.

Huang Haitao's injuries had mostly healed; his complexion was ruddy, and he had regained his former majesty.

"The four of you, demonstrate it for me."

Hearing this, Lu Li and the others performed the Azure Wave Palm from start to finish.

Their movements were fluid and natural, a true sign that the training was complete.

"Hmm, not bad, not bad. The four of you have good aptitude."

"What is most rare is Lu Li; he has practiced it the best."

Huang Haitao fixed his gaze on Lu Li, his eyes filled with appreciation.

Upon hearing this, Lu Li humbly replied, "Just luck."

Huang Haitao chuckled.

The expressions of Li Qing and the other two turned somewhat ugly.

They still remembered how they had taken the opportunity to mock Lu Li a few days ago because of his aloofness.

They never expected to be slapped in the face in return.

Fortunately, they hadn't ridiculed him too harshly, or they would have surely lost all face.

The other two felt secretly relieved.

But a trace of resentment flashed in the depths of Li Qing's eyes.

He had thought his own talent was the most outstanding, yet it turned out to be Lu Li!

"Alright, I will take you to receive your next martial arts techniques and arrange your positions," Huang Haitao said.

Afterward, Lu Li and the others followed Huang Haitao away under the envious gazes of the crowd.

First, they were given a martial art called the Wild Ox Fist.

As Lu Li expected, it was incomplete and could only barely be cultivated to the Skin-Refining realm.

In martial arts cultivation, it is best to choose a complete technique.

If one wants to switch techniques, they must pick a new one and start over from the beginning.

Just like how Lu Li had practiced the Tiger-Subduing Fist to its peak before switching to the Elephant Strength Bull Demon Fist.

Although one can build upon previous foundations, it ultimately wastes a lot of time and energy.

Not everyone is as gifted as Lu Li.

Lu Li remained calm on the surface, but sneered in his heart: "If they want me to improve, they will want me to seek the follow-up to the Wild Ox Fist."

"Heh, they are trying to bind us firmly to the Huang Family."

"It is fortunate that I am only here to obtain a legitimate identity."

"Otherwise, if I were truly one of them, I might have been deceived by the Huang Family."

He looked at Li Qing and the others, who were holding the Wild Ox Fist and studying it tirelessly with burning eyes; it seemed they were still unaware of the Huang Family's intentions.

Lu Li shook his head inwardly.

Subsequently, the four of them were assigned the position of courtyard guards, responsible for patrolling a section of the Huang Family's territory.

This territory was precisely the domain of the Fifth Young Master.

Now that the Fifth Young Master was dead, the courtyard stood empty.

They only needed to go through the motions; there was no need to waste effort on patrols.

Lu Li found himself with much more time to spare.

Who would have thought that slaughtering the Fifth Young Master would come with such perks?

Once the patrol was finished, he could head back.

However, the reason they had so much free time was that they were not official members of the imperial staff and still had to undergo an assessment.

In one year's time, mastering the Wild Ox Fist would complete the assessment.