Transcendent Realm

Upgrade my Yin Bone? Lin Qing thought to himself.

Han Tai's words struck at his pain point. Under the system of the Soul-Calming Office, constables needed to deal with evil spirits, which made Yin Bone Quality very important.

As someone with lower-grade Yin Bone, whether facing the upcoming reexamination or heading to the Prefectural City in the future to vie for other interests, he would fall into a great disadvantage.

If he could raise the quality of his Yin Bone, his future path would be much smoother.

"Indeed. You should also know the importance of Yin Bone. Precious medicines that can elevate Yin Bone Quality are extremely rare. Aside from my Han Family, you could never obtain them through any other channel," Han Tai smiled.

Lin Qing did not reply. Han Tai tried to persuade him further, "Think about it carefully. This is only part of the benefits. If you marry into the Han Family, you will be free from financial worries for a lifetime, and you won't need to fret over martial arts resources anymore. All you have to do is obey the commands of the Han Family Grand Elder."

Lin Qing shook his head. "I am grateful for the Grand Elder's high regard, but Lin Qing's strength is shallow and I am unequal to such a heavy responsibility. If there is nothing else, I will take my leave."

Han Tai's expression darkened. He did not answer, merely fixing his gaze intently on Lin Qing.

Lin Qing felt a wave of malice wash over him, but he did not care.

No matter what, he could never join the Han Family, even if they truly could elevate his Yin Bone Quality.

First, the Han Family colluded with evil cults, a heinous crime. Once investigated and brought to light, it would inevitably result in the extermination of their clan and confiscation of their property.

He possessed the Book of a Hundred Arts; there was no need to tie himself to the sinking ship of the Han Family.

His vision was set far ahead. He was going to the Prefectural City and even the Imperial Capital to make his mark, and he would never trap himself in the square inch of Jiangyin County.

Second, the Han Family oppressed the common people and sucked the marrow from their bones. Coming from an impoverished background himself, he hated the Han Family from the bottom of his heart and would never consort with them.

Glory and wealth cannot shake the moral principles in my heart. Even without the Han Family's help, I can become a top-tier expert.

A low-grade Yin Bone is fine too; there will be plenty of opportunities to upgrade to upper-grade in the future.

Lin Qing walked out of the teahouse and looked up at the sun hanging in the sky, his heart calm.

A pedantic fool! What use is a bit of talent? A low-grade Yin Bone is destined to amount to nothing, and you won't even pass the reexamination in a few days!

Inside the teahouse, rejected and displeased, Han Tai smashed a teacup and rose to leave.

Returning home.

Shen Lian delivered two hundred silver taels as promised, and Lin Qing handed her two hundred-tael silver notes.

With this, adding the silver he had previously looted from Yin Muhua, the total had reached five hundred and fifty taels.

The Rebirth Record has detected that the host's owned gold, silver, and spiritual objects have met the upgrade conditions. Do you wish to upgrade?

The moment this thought surfaced in his mind, a line of information popped up synchronously before him.

Upgrade!

In an instant, a large amount of silver vanished into thin air, and the level of the Rebirth Record surged forward by a massive margin, jumping directly from the second tier to the third tier.

A new piece of information emerged in Lin Qing's mind, bringing a wave of joy to his heart.

Third-tier Rebirth Record: Can equip three martial arts techniques simultaneously, skill replacement time shortened to four double-hours, and can obtain partial information about corpses within a range of fifty paces.

As the martial arts techniques he acquired through copying grew more numerous, two equipment slots had long since proven insufficient. Now that a third had been unlocked, this problem was resolved.

I can experiment with more skill combinations, and my combat power has increased dramatically once more. Confidence swelled in Lin Qing's heart.

However, glancing at the twenty-odd taels of scattered loose silver left on the table, he inevitably felt a pang of worry.

I'm broke again in an instant. Moreover, to upgrade the Rebirth Record to the fourth tier, the required gold and silver items multiply several times over, and spiritual objects are also needed—one Moonshadow Stone and one portion of Heavenly Dust Sand.

Lin Qing furrowed his brows slightly. He had no idea what those last two items were, figuring he could go to the Library Pavilion to flip through some books another day; perhaps he would find them.

No rush. These past few days, I'll practice the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake first and strive to reach Perfect Mastery.

Lin Qing got up and went to the courtyard. First, he swallowed a Bone-Strengthening Pill, then simultaneously equipped the Perfect Mastery Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake and Exceptional Fist Talent.

In an instant, a vast amount of information surfaced in his mind. All the detailed techniques related to the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake appeared naturally, and numerous puzzles were readily solved.

All he had to do was integrate these fine details into his body and internalize them as instinct.

Time flowed on, and in the blink of an eye, another five days passed.

During these five days, apart from his usual guard duties at the Soul-Calming Office, Lin Qing spent all his time practicing the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake.

Aided by the Rebirth Record, his progress advanced by leaps and bounds, over a hundred times faster than an ordinary person. In just a single day, he successfully broke through to Major Mastery.

Today, as Lin Qing practiced repetitively, inspiration struck him at a certain moment. He struck out with a palm, accompanied by a crisp cracking sound, and the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake successfully stepped into the realm of Perfect Mastery.

This meant that even without the blessing of the Rebirth Record, he was a Bright Force Perfection martial artist.

Because equipping the Perfect Mastery Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake earlier had already completed his bodily transformation, his physique underwent no changes this time, but Lin Qing quickly made a new discovery.

When he placed the Perfect Mastery Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake skill back into the Equipment Slot, he abruptly noticed that on the panel, the realm of the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake was not Limit-Breaking, but Transcendent Realm.

Hum!

Lin Qing's mind shook, his understanding of this martial art deepening by another huge margin as if stepping into a new realm.

He closed his eyes slightly, calmed his mind to digest it for a time, then his hands moved naturally and he rapidly executed eight stances.

Yet after finishing the eight stances, he did not stop, executing several successive, unprecedented new moves. Furthermore, these few moves actually linked up smoothly with the first eight, looking coherent, natural, and fluid as flowing water without a single trace of stuttering, as if the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake were never meant to be eight stances at all, but thirteen.

Lin Qing snapped his eyes open, a flash of enlightenment rising in his heart.

So that's how it is. Perfect Mastery plus Perfect Mastery equals Transcendent Realm. This is a realm beyond Limit-Breaking, something one can only step into when proficiency reaches a certain degree, and one's understanding of a martial art becomes exceptionally profound—even far surpassing its creator.

Limit-Breaking allows one to spot the flaws in original moves and refine or improve them.

Transcendent Realm allows one to continue deducing and creating entirely new moves, marking a step into an entirely different realm.

"Regarding the martial art of the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake alone, I should currently be the number one person in the world," Lin Qing mused.

With this, he felt completely at ease regarding the upcoming reexamination.

Although his Yin Bone was poor, Yin Bone was not the sole evaluation criterion; talent and realm also accounted for a large factor.

When the time came, as long as he displayed the Eight Strikes of the Spirit Snake at the Transcendent Realm level, he would undoubtedly pass the examination.

I must go to the Prefectural City, and I must pass this reexamination. To achieve my goal, exposing a sliver of my strength is of no consequence, Lin Qing thought.

Early the next morning.

Lin Qing finished breakfast and arrived at the Soul-Calming Office.

The moment he stepped into the Corpse Collector courtyard, he heard Yu Qiuyu calling out to him.

"Lin Qing, come with me. Tomorrow, the people from the Prefectural City Soul-Calming Office will arrive. Today is the last day before the reexamination; the Soul-Calming Office is taking the lead to summon reference personnel from all major factions of the inner and outer cities to hold a small gathering. First, to share key points of the reexamination, and second, to make friends so that you can look out for one another when you go to the Prefectural City in the future," Yu Qiuyu said.

"Let's go." Lin Qing nodded. Historically, there had always been such a gathering before reexaminations.