Ascending Dragon Conference

Chen Feiyi's expression turned solemn, and his tone grew heavier. "Don't joke around.

"It's perfectly normal not to remember it after the first time. I'll ask you once more—how much did you remember?"

"Reporting to Master, I remembered all of it." Cheng Yang repeated himself, his tone unwavering.

"Come, demonstrate it once."

Whether he truly remembered it or not would be clear the moment he took his stance.

Chen Feiyi's gaze was sharp as torches, fixed on Cheng Yang without blinking.

The burly senior brother who had led Cheng Yang inside also could not help sweating for him.

Master hated it most when people played tricks in front of him.

Whether this new Junior Brother Cheng truly had skill or was merely talking big would soon be revealed.

Recalling every detail of Chen Feiyi's movements just now, Cheng Yang slowly sank his waist, spread his legs slightly, straightened his spine, and rounded his arms as though embracing a full moon. Inch by inch, his entire body settled into the stance.

He completed the entire Rock-Still Stance from beginning to end.

Chen Feiyi and the burly senior brother exchanged a glance, and subtle changes appeared on both their faces at once.

This new junior brother... seemed to be a tiny bit of a genius?

Back then, even Chen Feiyi himself had spent two full days before he could perform the complete set of Rock-Still Stance movements.

Yet this kid before him had learned the basics after watching it only once?

"Your movements are still somewhat stiff and sluggish, but the overall framework is already there. Being able to complete the Rock-Still Stance in full is not bad." Chen Feiyi assessed him in an even tone.

This was the professional discipline carved into the bones of an old poker-face.

The burly senior brother's mouth twitched. Master, this is the county town, not the prefectural city. Could you not set the bar so high?

Besides, even among the geniuses of the prefectural city, there probably were not many who could reproduce an advanced stance technique from start to finish after seeing it once, right?

Of course, he had never been to the prefectural city either. It was purely the wild imaginings of a country bumpkin.

"Bear with it. I'll feel your bones." Chen Feiyi's expression grew more serious.

For disciples with ordinary talent, he could not be bothered to spend the effort. Money changed hands, they trained for a few months, and then they left.

But Cheng Yang was different. The comprehension this boy had displayed was simply terrifying. If his innate bone structure was also outstanding, his future achievements would surely be beyond measure.

Though the odds were not high, Chen Feiyi did not ask for much. As long as Cheng Yang's bone structure was passable, he would be willing to accept the boy as a personal disciple.

"So the bone-feeling test is finally here? I knew it felt like a step was missing."

Spirit Crane Martial Hall had not had this step, so Cheng Yang was rather curious. With the boost of "Peerless Bearing," what exactly would his innate bone structure be like?

The next instant, Chen Feiyi's fingers pressed against his shoulder blade and abruptly exerted force.

Pain made Cheng Yang bare his teeth, the veins at his temples bulging, yet he clenched his teeth and did not make a sound.

"This bone structure—!"

Chen Feiyi's pupils contracted slightly. It was as though light had exploded in his eyes, as if he had discovered a treasure buried for years within this twenty-year-old skeleton.

"Master Chen, may I ask how my bone structure is?" Cheng Yang asked after catching his breath.

Surely, no matter how poor his bone structure was, it could not be that bad?

"Not bad. Very not bad." Chen Feiyi tried again and again to suppress the corners of his mouth, but in the end failed. They lifted upward of their own accord.

Not bad? Very not bad? Cheng Yang did not quite know what sort of "not bad" that was.

But judging by the curve at the corner of his master's mouth that was nearly impossible to hold down, it was probably genuinely very good.

"Yan Shuai, stay here and show your Junior Brother Cheng around. Your master's lower abdomen is a little bloated. I'll be back shortly."

Before Yan Shuai could reply, Chen Feiyi had already turned around and strode away with his hands behind his back.

Only after watching his master's back disappear beyond the moon gate did Yan Shuai turn to Cheng Yang and strike up a conversation. "Junior Brother Cheng, my name is Yan Shuai. If you run into any difficulties at the martial hall in the future, come find me."

"Thank you, Senior Brother Yan. I hope for your guidance in the future." Cheng Yang returned the courtesy politely.

"Certainly, certainly." Yan Shuai waved his hands repeatedly.

His principle toward this kind of gifted seedling was simple: if he could befriend them, he would do his best to do so; even if he could not, he absolutely must not offend them.

He needed to quickly build a good relationship with Junior Brother Cheng. When the other man soared into the sky one day, if he casually gave him a helping hand, that would be a heaven-sent opportunity.

"Senior Brother Yan, there is something I don't quite understand." Cheng Yang spoke up.

"Please speak freely, Junior Brother. Yan will certainly tell you everything he knows." Yan Shuai patted his chest.

"I previously practiced a stance technique at a small martial hall. Will that affect my future cultivation of the Rock-Still Stance? Do I need to discard my previous training?"

"No! Not at all. Junior Brother Cheng, you are worrying too much." Yan Shuai explained with a smile.

"Skin Tempering, Flesh Tempering, and Bone Tempering are Foundation Establishment's Three Gates of martial cultivation. Put plainly, they are about gradually strengthening the qi and blood within the human body, and stance techniques are what strengthen qi and blood."

"Even the advanced stance techniques of our Chen Clan Martial Hall can only accumulate a limited amount of qi and blood through Foundation Establishment's Three Gates.

"Truly gifted disciples often learn a second, or even a third, stance technique in order to go farther in the future.

"During the Foundation Establishment stage, the firmer the foundation one lays, the broader one's path in martial cultivation will be in the future."

"So that's how it is. Thank you, Senior Brother, for clearing up my confusion." Cheng Yang clasped his fists sincerely.

"Ordinary disciples like me reach their limit after practicing one stance technique.

"But geniuses like you, Junior Brother Cheng, can easily practice two stance techniques at once." Yan Shuai paused, his tone turning more solemn.

"However, this is also a trap. The more qi and blood you accumulate, the harder it becomes to break through the gates.

"So you must act within your capabilities, lest you leave behind a lifelong regret."

"Thank you for the reminder, Senior Brother. I will remember it."

Cheng Yang clasped his fists in thanks.

Since the foundation of Foundation Establishment's Three Gates affected one's future ceiling, he might as well accumulate qi and blood to the limit at this stage before breaking through.

After all, he had no bottlenecks in martial cultivation. The notion that more qi and blood meant greater difficulty in breaking through simply did not exist for him.

Senior Brother Yan's words gave him a new appreciation for the importance of basic knowledge about martial cultivation.

It seemed he would have to find an opportunity to fill in his knowledge in this area later.

Meanwhile.

In the latrine.

Chen Feiyi leaned against the wall, finally no longer needing to hold himself back. Staring at the dust on the rafters, the curve of his mouth spread wider and wider, nearly rising into the heavens.

A genius!

A true genius had come to his Chen Clan Martial Hall!

Unfortunately, there were two flies in the ointment. First, this disciple had begun practicing martial arts too late and missed the best age for training.

Second, the timing of his entry was terribly unfortunate. The once-every-four-years Ascending Dragon Conference would begin in just one month.

With only one month left, Cheng Yang was merely in the Skin Tempering Realm. How could he contend against those Bone Tempering Realm scions of Qinglin County's great families? It seemed impossible even to think about.

He could only wait for the next one.

At the next Ascending Dragon Conference, with Chen Feiyi personally training him, he was absolutely certain he could make Cheng Yang astonish the world with a single feat.

With superior innate bone structure, even if he had started several years late, the few extra years those scions of great families had trained amounted to nothing before absolute talent.

The more Chen Feiyi thought about it, the happier he became. Even his constipation eased somewhat.