First Cultivation

"After you acknowledge your subordinates, you can go home. Come back early tomorrow morning," Wang An said with a chuckle.

"Alright." Lu Shaolin nodded.

"By the way, did that old man at the Martial Arts Pavilion recommend his Savage Bear Skill to you?" Wang An asked.

"Uh... how did Brother Wang know?" Lu Shaolin asked in confusion.

"Ha ha ha ha! That old man recommends it to every newcomer. But Reckless Bull Force is already an extremely adaptable cultivation method, and very few people fail to get started with it, so that old man hardly ever manages to sell his skill manuals!" Wang An said with a hearty laugh.

"So the cultivation method is genuine?" Lu Shaolin's eyes lit up.

"Of course it's genuine. Could it be that you want to cultivate two methods at the same time?"

"Is that not possible?"

"It's not impossible, but cultivation methods can conflict with one another. A second method would be extremely difficult to get started with, and the losses would outweigh the gains! Rather than waste your time, it's better to specialize in one!"

"Would internal and external cultivation methods conflict too?"

"Ha ha ha, I naturally meant external methods conflicting with external methods. Cultivating both internally and externally causes no conflict at all, but it's very difficult for people like us to obtain internal cultivation methods."

"If a cultivation method can only reach the Tendon-Tempering Realm, then once one reaches perfection in the Tendon-Tempering Realm, can they no longer cultivate further?"

"With external methods, you can directly switch to another method that reaches the Organ-Tempering Realm. With the foundation laid by your previous method, breaking through to the realm your old method reached will be extremely fast!"

"Why aren't cultivation methods classified by their cultivation limit?"

"I heard that many years ago, they were classified by their limits. But later, a martial arts prodigy appeared. His own realm was not high, yet the power of his cultivation method was tremendous. Fighting above his level was as easy as turning his hand over, so they changed to classifying them by the power of the methods. I don't know the specific details."

Wang An explained.

"I have learned much!" Lu Shaolin clasped his fists in thanks.

"You're still young, little brother. Perhaps you'll have a chance to obtain an internal cultivation method in the future and cultivate both internally and externally," Wang An said with his usual smile.

"Then I'll borrow Brother Wang's auspicious words!" Lu Shaolin replied.

"Boss Wang, Boss Lu, Ma San and Li Si have arrived!" a man outside the cabin said, poking his head in.

"Boss Lu?" Lu Shaolin's face darkened. What kind of title was that?

"Ha ha ha ha, it's only a form of address, meant to distinguish the few of us leaders. Little brother can have them call you something else," Wang An said, laughing uproariously.

"Let the two of them come in!" he said to the man after he finished laughing.

"Yes!" The man cupped his fists in acknowledgement and withdrew his head.

The pleasure boat swayed gently, and two men in black entered.

"Your subordinates, Ma San and Li Si, greet the two leaders!" the two said in unison, clasping their fists.

Ma San had a long face and a sturdy, muscular build.

Li Si had a broad round face, a fierce-looking countenance, and a large belly thrust forward.

"Mm." Wang An nodded. "This is your direct superior, Lu Shaolin."

"Boss Lu!" The two clasped their fists again.

"Mm, hello." Lu Shaolin smiled awkwardly. Hearing "Boss Lu" made him think of a deer head—the kind hung on a wall!

"Alright, little brother, now that you know your men, I won't keep you any longer. I imagine you're eager to return and cultivate your method," Wang An said as he rose.

"That is indeed the case!" Lu Shaolin said with a smile, rising as well.

Lu Shaolin then bade Wang An farewell and led Ma San and Li Si onto the dock.

"Boss Lu, since you joined the gang today, we would like to treat you to a meal in celebration. We hope Boss Lu will honor us with your presence!" Li Si said respectfully, stepping forward.

"You can just call me Boss from now on. I truly can't get used to 'Boss Lu.' As for the meal, I'll treat you tomorrow. I really do have urgent business today," Lu Shaolin said.

"Alright, Boss! Then we'll treat you tomorrow!" Li Si insisted on paying himself.

"We'll discuss it tomorrow. I'll head home first. You two may go as well," Lu Shaolin said, stopping in his tracks.

"Alright, Boss. Take care!" Ma San and Li Si said, cupping their fists.

"See you tomorrow!" Lu Shaolin nodded and hurried toward Panshan Village.

Upon returning home, Lu Shaolin set the clothes and medicinal oil on the table, then took out the Reckless Bull Force manual and began reading.

After finishing it, he finally understood how external cultivation was practiced.

External cultivation trained strength! It trained tendons, bones, and skin! From the outside inward!

The Skin Refinement Realm enhanced a martial artist's defense and strength. Once someone reached perfection in the Skin Refinement Realm, their entire body would be like it was covered in a layer of leather armor, greatly improving their resistance to blows!

The requirement to begin Reckless Bull Force was to coat one's entire body in medicinal oil, visualize the Martial Dao True-Intent Diagram in one's mind, and whip oneself with all one's strength using a thick hemp rope. Once the medicinal oil had been completely absorbed by the body, one cultivation session was complete.

Those with martial talent could generally get started after three attempts. After getting started, medicinal oil was no longer needed. They only had to persistently whip themselves over the long term, then use the special postures described in the manual to temper their strength.

Reckless Bull Force had three levels in total. Each completed level increased one's strength by a hundred jin. The exact increase varied depending on one's constitution. Naturally, greater strength made the whipping even more ferocious. Reaching the third level generally meant perfection in the Skin Refinement Realm.

Depending on the quality of one's aptitude, the time needed to reach perfection in the Skin Refinement Realm also varied.

Lu Shaolin frowned. This was fucking self-torture! And the kind one had to persist at for a long time!

He had a system. There was no need to be this stupid!

"System!" Lu Shaolin stirred his mind.

The System Panel appeared before his eyes:

Name: Lu Shaolin

Source Points: 0.8

Martial Dao Realm: None

Cultivation Method: Reckless Bull Force (Not Started)

Martial Skills: Three Absolutes Spear (Perfect), Eight Extremes Fist (Minor Mastery).

Lu Shaolin stared at the panel in a daze. The plus sign after Reckless Bull Force was gray. He tried tapping it, but there was no reaction at all.

There was no plus sign after Three Absolutes Spear. Perhaps reaching perfection was its limit.

The only thing he could tap was Eight Extremes Fist, but Eight Extremes Fist was of no use to him at the moment.

Eight Extremes Fist could be upgraded, but Reckless Bull Force could not. Was it because he did not have enough Source Points?

Lu Shaolin thought to himself.

He then took out the Mad Demon Staff Technique and began reading. After he finished and thoroughly understood it, he summoned the System Panel again.

An additional entry for Mad Demon Staff Technique had appeared in the martial skills section. It was not started, and the plus sign after it was gray as well.

It seemed he really did not have enough Source Points!

Lu Shaolin's expression turned ugly. Since he lacked Source Points, did he truly have to whip himself?

At last, his gaze hardened. He found a length of thick hemp rope, grabbed the medicinal oil, and rushed into the bedroom.

Before long, muffled groans drifted out from the bedroom.

Half an hour later, Lu Shaolin emerged from the bedroom bare-chested, baring his teeth in pain.

His upper body was bright red. The rest of his body was likely no different!

He drained the tea on the table in one gulp, then slowly walked into the kitchen to prepare a meal.

After lunch, Lu Shaolin summoned the System Panel again.

After taking a look, Reckless Bull Force was still in the not-started state.

It seemed his martial aptitude was not particularly strong.

He could not cultivate today anymore. The manual had explained that excess was as bad as deficiency. If he pushed himself too hard, not only would it be ineffective, he would injure his body.

With that in mind, Lu Shaolin went straight to the bedroom for a nap.

After sleeping for two hours, Lu Shaolin got up and practiced the Mad Demon Staff Technique.

He practiced the awkward postures for half the day, but when he checked the panel, he still had not gotten started.

He simply could not be bothered to practice anymore. Tomorrow, he would ask the gang members where there were demons and strange entities. As the local tyrants of Ping County, there was no way they could be uninformed. Then he would see whether he could scrounge up some Source Points.

He slipped into the kitchen and began making dinner, still stewing meat.

After dinner, Lu Shaolin took a walk around the courtyard for a while before returning to his bedroom to rest.

Early the next morning, Lu Shaolin opened his eyes and looked at his bare upper body. His skin had already returned to normal.

The medicinal oil was highly effective!

After changing into the Warrior Uniform issued by the gang, Lu Shaolin drew his Waist Saber and examined it.

The blade gleamed like snow. It was a fine Dao!