What Is the Initial Realm

"What kind of martial art is this?"

Shen Yi opened his eyes. It was as if he had broken through some bottleneck. A mighty force coursed through his body, far beyond the limits of an ordinary human.

The Demon-Subduing Blade Technique and Cloud-Parting Long Fist he had learned earlier were quick-training methods created by the Demon Suppression Division, which had compiled martial arts from across the land. They already counted as first-rate techniques.

After mastering them completely, he had become as strong as an ox and as swift as flying thunder. It had left Shen Yi deeply astonished.

But this brief technique, only seventy-eight characters long, had shown him an entirely new world. He felt an indescribable sense of transcendence, as though he were about to ascend into some entirely new existence.

"It's no longer about digging potential out of my body. It's about using external forces to temper it."

"Is my progress slow because I don't have enough external force?"

Shen Yi understood the principle, but he had no good solution.

He had already discovered during his previous deductions that the entire process of practicing martial arts was closely tied to his current circumstances.

If his guess was right, he could take a potent medicine rich in vital essence before deducing a martial art, then use its medicinal power to accelerate his progress.

But where was he supposed to find such medicine?

His predecessor had seemed impressive, but in truth, he'd been a gambler. He'd squandered the ill-gotten gains he'd extorted from the common people, along with his salary, at the gambling den. The money he had left would be enough to get by until payday next month, at best.

Besides, every time Shen Yi made a deduction, it took a year. Ordinary medicine would have little effect. Only genuine treasures of heaven and earth would help.

"Damn gamblers... I'll deal with it if I get the chance."

Shen Yi looked at the still-generous lifespan he had gained from demons and monsters and confidently continued pouring it in.

[Year Sixteen: You exhaust all your vital essence to nourish the bones throughout your body.]

[Year Twenty-Six: There is not enough medicinal power, and your progress is slow...]

[Year Thirty-Eight: More than half the bones in your body have been nourished, but collecting vital essence from ordinary food has yielded little.]

Shen Yi's expression gradually changed, and a hint of tension crept into his eyes.

[Year Fifty-Two: After years of accumulation, you break through the bone barrier. The first section of the Wind and Thunder Precious Scroll reaches minor mastery.]

Only when these words appeared did Shen Yi realize he had been holding his breath for so long that he'd forgotten to breathe.

Yet the rewards were quite generous.

Not only had his body undergone a tremendous transformation, but the bones hidden beneath his flesh had become as hard as gold and iron, unbreakable. The sense of transcendence welling up in his mind had also grown more intense, like sweet honey drawing him closer without his even realizing it.

That miraculous realm gradually lifted its veil for Shen Yi.

He gritted his teeth and went all in.

[Year Eighty-Nine: You have grown used to slowly accumulating vital essence, year after year, day after day. You have become increasingly adept at using it to nourish your body.]

[Year One Hundred and Six: One morning, you suddenly notice a change in your skin, but feel no particular joy. It seems only natural. The first section of the Wind and Thunder Precious Scroll reaches great mastery.]

This time, Shen Yi didn't stop for even a moment. He felt closer and closer to that realm.

He numbly began pouring more of his lifespan gained from demons and monsters into the technique.

His sinews, bones, skin, and flesh had only one barrier left.

[Year One Hundred and Eighty-Two: You cook your meal as usual and take a bite, but find it utterly tasteless. Suddenly, you feel there is something far more delicious in this world.]

[That thing is everywhere, yet impossible to grasp.]

[You look down at yourself and suddenly understand. To transcend the mortal world, even the plump duck leg in your hand has become a mundane thing to you.]

[After more than a century of nourishment, your body has become the perfect vessel for that elusive thing... The first section of the Wind and Thunder Precious Scroll reaches perfection.]

Shen Yi closed his eyes. That realm seemed within arm's reach, just one final step away.

The Initial Realm represented a new beginning: to live another life in this world, reborn in a different form.

But now, no matter what, he couldn't take that final step.

The seventy-eight-character mantra simply ended there.

A spark of anger rose inexplicably in Shen Yi's heart. For fuck's sake, finish what you started! What was the point of stopping halfway? What came after reaching perfection in the Mortal Body?

He suddenly stood up and was just about to take a step when his expression changed.

The changes in his body after he'd gone from being utterly weak to mastering the Demon-Subduing Blade Technique paled in comparison to what he felt now.

Shen Yi even felt a little lost. He had merely lifted his hand, yet it seemed he could easily flip the little woodshed over.

Then, like a comatose patient waking up, he slowly began doing rehabilitation exercises.

It wasn't until Chen Ji called from outside, "Time to eat," that he stopped.

The aroma of freshly steamed rice drifted into the room. Shen Yi furrowed his brow as two conflicting emotions repeatedly warred in his mind. One was his habitual craving; the other made him feel he had little appetite.

In the end, the former won out.

Shen Yi strode out of the room.

The place was truly cramped. Usually, after cooking, the siblings would take their meals back to their rooms and eat in private.

With an extra person there today, Chen Ji had no idea where he'd dug up a small table and set it down in the tiny patch of open space.

Shen Yi watched Chen Ji carry the food into the room and then close the door for Chen Jinyu. He couldn't help saying, "I'm really not that kind of person."

"It's not about you. She's used to being alone."

Chen Ji silently crouched back beside the table and served Shen Yi some rice, then wiped down his chopsticks.

As they spoke, the wooden door quietly opened a crack. Chen Jinyu's curious eyes peeked out, looking outside.

"..." Shen Yi pursed his lips.

"..." Chen Ji paused as he served the rice. After a moment of silence, he sighed. "If you want to come out, then come out."

Chen Jinyu pushed open the door, holding her bowl. She came over and crouched beside the wooden table, timidly lifting the corners of her lips. She was demure, yet there was also a hint of sweetness to her.

She had always listened to her elder brother. She didn't want to cause him, already worn down and anxious, any more trouble.

But that didn't mean she had no thoughts of her own.

Take today, for example. What her elder brother had done would surely cause his superior to grow suspicious of him.

If it had really been to protect her from that flower thief, that would have been one thing.

But in Chen Jinyu's eyes, a man who, when her brother had helped her up in the teahouse garden, had noticed the disappointment in the other girls' eyes and willingly played the role of their big brother for a while couldn't be all that bad.

Thinking this, she curiously looked across at him, just as Shen Yi looked her way.

They smiled at each other.

"Crack."

Chen Ji gripped his chopsticks and stared at Shen Yi with a humorless smile.

You bastard! You're not that kind of person? Huh? You're not that kind of person?

"Eat," Shen Yi said, looking away with some helplessness.

He had only one year of life left. How could he have the energy for those thoughts?

He had simply gained the Wind and Thunder Precious Scroll and was in a good mood. Besides, he found the girl's look amusing: she seemed to have plenty on her mind, yet pretended to be naïve.

Even if he were lucky enough to extend his lifespan in the future, if he really were to find one... or several...

Shen Yi preferred those with fuller figures, who were a little older, with less innocence and more allure in their eyes.

At this thought, Shen Yi suddenly realized something. Wait...

Tempering my body with vital essence, reaching the peak of the Mortal Body!

Doesn't that increase my lifespan? I could live two years longer just by doing tai chi in the park!

The information he'd missed earlier, because he'd been so absorbed in the Initial Realm, slowly surfaced.

[Remaining lifespan: Twenty-one years]