The Art of Body Tempering

Inside the cave abode.

Ye Han ate great mouthfuls of dried meat, then popped a fruit into his mouth, filling it with a fragrant sweetness...

He had to admit that Zhang Qingshan really put a great deal of care into looking after him. The dried meat and fruit he had brought were delicious, not the sort of things one could find just anywhere.

Truth be told, in these few short days, he had eaten more good food on Seven Mysteries Peak than he had in his entire life in Green Ox Village.

But Ye Han was not someone who craved the pleasures of the palate. Once he was seventy or eighty percent full, he carefully put away the remaining fruit and dried meat...

He was used to poverty and never ate all his good food in one sitting. To his mind, no matter when it was, keeping food in reserve kept panic out of his heart!

Meanwhile, Zhang Qingshan watched from beside him with a somewhat strange expression, hesitating as though he wanted to tell Ye Han something but could not bring himself to say it.

Seeing him like this, Ye Han took the initiative. "Senior Brother Zhang Qingshan, is there something you want to tell me? We're close enough now. If you have something to say, just say it."

He could tell that Zhang Qingshan probably wanted to talk about the fellows they had encountered. Those three were certainly no good.

Though he was young, he had experienced all the bitterness of life and was far more mature than others his age. One could even say there was little difference between him and an adult.

Perhaps the only difference lay in matters between men and women.

He was also exceptionally clever. Otherwise, Teacher Lan Qing would never have made an exception and taught him to read...

With just a few words, he drew himself closer to Zhang Qingshan and made Zhang Qingshan trust him even more...

Only then did Zhang Qingshan say, "Junior Brother Ye, although you're the Seventh Elder's disciple, you need to understand that strength reigns supreme in the world of immortal cultivators. Even if you have someone backing you, you should still tuck your tail between your legs when you encounter cultivators stronger than you, because they could stab you in the back and kill you at any time."

He paused. Seeing Ye Han's faint, almost amused smile, as though he did not care, he said sternly, "Junior Brother Ye, I'm not joking with you. Take Zhang Sanlei, Li Zongqing, and Wang Fulai, those three we just encountered. Their cultivation may be a little lower than mine, but they're exceptionally ruthless. Once they join forces, they're very difficult to deal with! If they set their sights on you, you might have a rough time of it."

At this point, Zhang Qingshan said with deep feeling, "Junior Brother Ye, I must remind you of one thing. In our world of immortal cultivators, you must never lack a heart that guards against others, but you must never harbor a heart that harms them!"

Ye Han inwardly scoffed at this. Never lack a heart that guards against others, but never harbor a heart that harms them?

Shouldn't you nip trouble in the bud and kill anyone who dared come after you before they could act?

Outwardly, however, he still looked utterly innocent as he said, "I understand, Senior Brother Zhang. Thank you for the warning. I'll be sure to remember what you said."

Hearing this, Zhang Qingshan nodded. "As long as you remember, all my concern won't have been wasted."

Ye Han continued, "By the way, Senior Brother Zhang, shouldn't the cultivation methods we immortal cultivators practice include things like Immortal Arts? Do you know any? Could you teach me?"

Ye Han had wanted to ask Zhang Qingshan about this for some time. He had seen these immortal cultivators flying about, and the techniques that female immortal and that monster had used in their fight were certainly beyond the level of martial arts masters in the ordinary sense.

Now that he had a little magical power and was an immortal cultivator himself, surely he could start practicing Immortal Arts?

But Zhang Qingshan replied, "Junior Brother Ye, you're practicing a wood-element cultivation method. As it happens, I haven't practiced any wood-element spells, so I can't teach you!"

He paused, then continued, "But ordinary Wood Element Spells are very cheap. Once I receive next month's stipend, I'll get you a manual."

"Still, I must offer you a word of advice, Junior Brother. With your current cultivation, you're nowhere near being able to cast spells. You'll need to reach at least the middle stage of the Qi Refining Realm first."

"Let me put it this way. We immortal cultivators need magical power to cast spells. Without enough magical power, you can't activate the incantations and hand seals needed to unleash them... For example, with the little strength you have now, you couldn't possibly lift a hundred-jin boulder. Only after training until you have enough strength could you lift it. Do you understand?"

At this point, Zhang Qingshan looked at Ye Han, hoping he understood what he meant. It was not that he was unwilling to teach him.

As clever as Ye Han was, he naturally understood. His cultivation was simply too low. Even if he learned a spell, it would probably be useless. This left him a little disappointed. It seemed he still had to raise his cultivation to a higher level first.

So he replied, "I understand, Senior Brother Zhang. I'll work hard at cultivating."

Hearing this, Zhang Qingshan nodded as well. Then, as though something had suddenly occurred to him, he immediately said, "Oh, right, right! Junior Brother Ye, although you can't practice spells, you can start practicing the art of body tempering."

Ye Han's interest stirred, and he asked, "What is the art of body tempering?"

Zhang Qingshan suddenly stood up and forcefully flexed both arms. His exaggerated muscles bulged, giving off a metallic sheen. He looked brimming with strength and utterly fierce.

The aura coming off him made Ye Han tremble with fear. Zhang Qingshan was more formidable than any martial arts master he had ever seen. With a body that massive, even a hundred of him would be no match for Zhang Qingshan.

Suddenly, he understood what Zhang Qingshan meant. So the art of body tempering was a spell for strengthening the physical body?

Back when he was in Green Ox Village, he had often trained his strength and endurance as well, so he would not be left at anyone's mercy.

He had simply been too young for the training to have much effect. Even so, he was stronger than most children his age, and none of his peers in the village dared bully him.

Of course, his way with words and reluctance to get into conflicts with others were part of the reason too.

Only then did Zhang Qingshan say, "You've now seen the art of body tempering. It strengthens our physical bodies, using our magical power and cultivation to train ourselves, making us stronger and more resilient. Don't underestimate what the body can do. Many novice immortal cultivators neglect to train their bodies. When we actually fight other cultivators and our magical power runs dry, we can still fight with our bodies. Besides, when we try to break through a bottleneck in cultivation, tougher bodies can withstand a greater surge of magical power."

"In short, strengthening the body is extremely important. The earlier an immortal cultivator starts, the better. There are only benefits and no drawbacks. Besides, Junior Brother Ye, you can only cultivate for a limited time each session, and there's nothing else you can do, so using that time to train your body couldn't be better."

After hearing Zhang Qingshan's words, Ye Han immediately said, "Senior Brother Zhang! Please teach me the body-tempering method!"

At last, he could practice something else. Even though it was a body-tempering method, he was still tremendously excited. After all, who did not want to become stronger?