Chapter 00169: The First Step into the Hall
# The First Step into the Hall
Chapter 169
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 169: The First Step into the Hall
Hu Min was taken aback; he had never heard such a peculiar request before.
Just then, there was another knock at the door.
It was a messenger sent by the Great Wind Army’s lieutenant, Xiao Maoliang, notifying Hu Min that the squad had been temporarily assigned to patrol the outskirts of the city and needed to depart immediately.
The Emperor Flowing Sap had been flowing all night, and some creatures on the Chipa Plateau had gained enlightenment, inevitably causing some restlessness.
The Great Wind Army was to leave the city to prevent the newly emerged monsters from threatening the fields and farms.
Military orders were as heavy as a mountain.
Hu Min didn’t think much of it and casually took out a medicinal powder, which surprisingly was a bright yellow, much better in quality than the one He Lingchuan had refined himself.
The latter had only managed to produce a green bean-sized piece: “Thank you.”
He poured a few drops of Emperor Flowing Sap in exchange, and Hu Min said, “I’ll be leaving first; you take your time.” After saying that, he hurriedly changed clothes and left.
After taking the medicine, He Lingchuan waited for a quarter of an hour, but his body showed no reaction, as if what he had just consumed was merely air.
The experiment failed; long-lasting enhancement-type medicines were useless to him.
Indeed, such good fortune was non-existent in this world.
Even though he had anticipated it, he still sighed in regret before leaving Hu Min’s home and heading straight to the Meritorious Service Department.
Since it was confirmed that Emperor Flowing Sap was ineffective for him, he might as well exchange it for military merit quickly.
Today, Liu Gongcao was still on duty at the Pengcheng Office, as busy as ever.
Upon hearing that He Lingchuan was going to submit the Emperor Flowing Sap, he simply waved his hand: “Hand it over.”
Although Emperor Flowing Sap was good, in such a large Panlong City, there would always be people who, for various reasons, would not consume it themselves.
Liu Gongcao took a needle tip and picked out a bit of the sap from the wine jar, examining it closely and sniffing it.
Then he said to He Lingchuan, “There are impurities; it’s of medium to low quality. I’ll take it.”
By his calculations, the merit from this jar of Emperor Flowing Sap exceeded the merit He Lingchuan had earned last time when he saved people at the Xieqing Valley.
After all, the Great Wind Army often had rescue missions, while Emperor Flowing Sap was something rare and hard to come by.
The reward this time was similar to the last, with a few more types of healing medicine, both for internal and external use.
He Lingchuan smiled and said, “If everyone submits, wouldn’t everyone be able to exchange for a wooden house again?”
Liu Gongcao replied sternly, “Such things, not many people would choose to submit.”
He Lingchuan looked at him and let out a long “Oh.”
Indeed, aside from personal use and submission, it could also be bought and sold among the common folk.
Merit needed to be accumulated bit by bit; without enough, one could not exchange for what they desired.
“My house is sufficient; can I exchange it for a suitable weapon instead?” At least in his dreams, He Lingchuan had low requirements for his dwelling.
In the past, when playing games, others would spend money on fashion items, but he had never spent a dime in that regard.
“What type?”
“A blade.” He had entered Panlong City empty-handed and needed a weapon to enhance his sense of security.
Liu Gongcao went to the back room and quickly brought out a ring-handled knife and a whetstone.
The blade was cold and sharp, with two small nicks on the back and a somewhat worn handle, the end of which was missing the ring.
“The owner of this knife sacrificed himself last year on Baimoshan,” he said solemnly. “It’s a good knife; I hope you use it well.”
He Lingchuan held it in his hand, twirled it, and found it quite heavy and easy to wield.
“Thank you! I also want to exchange military merit for a few divine abilities. Um, I heard that basic heart methods are free?”
Liu Gongcao sat back down, waving his hand towards the outside: “Go out and find the Zhi Zhen Office across the street.”
…
The Zhi Zhen Office was by the riverside.
Strictly speaking, half of this building was built over the river.
As soon as He Lingchuan walked in, he saw a water pavilion inside, where two old men sat, one in black and the other in white, yet they looked exactly alike.
It was now the second quarter of the morning, still early, and due to the sudden appearance of Emperor Flowing Sap last night, the Zhi Zhen Office was quite deserted.
He Lingchuan, with his keen ears, heard the two old men murmuring about news from inside and outside the city.
Someone had found a large lump of Emperor Flowing Sap, which led to a neighborhood brawl, and there were unusual movements from the demon beasts near the mines, resulting in injuries to miners, and so on.
He Lingchuan stepped forward to greet them, stating that he needed a basic heart method.
The old man scrutinized him from head to toe: “You’re not from Panlong City, are you?”
“I’m from Tusu City, but I have registered here.”
“No wonder,” the old man said. “Then you need to find Mr. Zhang for a test first.” After saying that, he shook a bell that was suspended above the water.
The bell was very close to the water, only about two feet away, and its clear sound echoed throughout the water pavilion.
“Go down and stand properly.” There was a slope leading directly into the water, half of the river surface covered by green lotus leaves, with flower buds only showing a hint of pink at the tips, attracting several dragonflies to hover motionlessly.
As soon as He Lingchuan stood by the water’s edge, the dragonflies hurriedly flew away.
With a splash, several things that resembled snakes and whips suddenly emerged from the water, curling towards him.
He Lingchuan was startled and instinctively jumped back.
“Why are you running? Stand properly!” The old man was impatient. “Mr. Zhang can’t harm you, can he?”
He Lingchuan then saw clearly that these were several long and thick tentacles, with bases thicker than his waist, but the tips were sharp and thin, covered in suction cups.
Behind the tentacles floated an oval-shaped large head, not smooth, with clusters of sharp ridges curling backward.
Its eyes were black and round, larger than pomelos.
“Zhang…” What a large tentacled monster! It turned out the old man was referring to “Mr. Zhang” and not “Mr. Zhang.”
He Lingchuan heard a voice call out: “Come here, let me touch you.”
The fear of creatures with tentacles was deeply ingrained in one’s bones.
But he also knew he was powerless to resist and could only grit his teeth and stand by the water’s edge.
Several tentacles reached out and wrapped around him, the unique cold and slimy feel of the soft-bodied creature sending a shiver down He Lingchuan’s spine.
They were more agile than human hands, grasping several key acupoints on his body.
He Lingchuan felt a cold power being injected into him, and the true qi in his dantian reacted, quickly circulating throughout his body.
“Your foundation is quite solid, and the impurities have been cleared; it’s acceptable,” Mr. Zhang commented while probing him. “Hmm—your muscles and bones are strong.”
“Ah—your blood and qi are abundant, and your essence is full; very good.”
His tone was strange, and even He Lingchuan, with his thick skin, felt a bit overwhelmed, but the two old men didn’t take it to heart: “Oh, so that means your essence hasn’t leaked.”
Mr. Zhang pressed down on various parts of He Lingchuan’s body before slowly retracting the tentacles.
The two old men walked over, and the three bald heads huddled together, whispering.
He Lingchuan had heard Hu Min mention that the Zhi Zhen Office would tailor heart methods for cultivators.
But he never expected that the tester would actually be an aquatic monster.
Indeed, there were not only humans in Panlong City.
But an octopus living in freshwater, still on the plateau, the world was truly full of wonders.
However, this monster’s eight tentacles could simultaneously attend to almost all of a person’s meridians and acupoints, comprehensively grasping the operation of true power, something humans could not compare to.
The only aftereffect was that the suction cups left dozens of red marks.
Before long, the discussion concluded, and the old men spoke in unison: “We three have unanimously decided on the Zi Wu Jue.”
There were five publicly available heart methods in Panlong City, and they chose the Zi Wu Jue for He Lingchuan.
He Lingchuan cleared his throat: “Can I borrow the other four methods to take a look?”
The response was in unison again: “No.”
“…”
“With your knowledge, how would you know which one is most suitable for you?”
“Mixing heart methods is harmful and unbeneficial.”
“Things that shouldn’t be yours are best left untouched.”
“We have selected heart methods for over nine thousand people, and none have gone wrong.”
The two old men spoke back and forth, their tone, speed, and pitch completely identical.
If one were to close their eyes and listen, it would sound as if one person was speaking.
Mr. Zhang slipped back into the river and became invisible.
One of the old men went to a wooden cabinet and took out a jade slip, handing it to He Lingchuan: “The heart method is here; just probe it with your divine sense.”
He Lingchuan couldn’t help but play with it for a moment.
He had once entered a cave dwelling of an immortal at the bottom of the Xianling Lake and found several jade slips inside, but they were all blank, containing no information.
He didn’t expect that Panlong City also used jade slips.
He probed with his divine sense, and indeed, there was a complete method inside.
Although the characters were quite different from those used today, he could understand them all, word for word.
What was even more miraculous was that after he released the jade slip, that method remained engraved in the depths of his sea of consciousness, vivid and unforgettable!
There was no need to memorize it; this kind of replicative memory would not go wrong.
He Lingchuan marveled inwardly; this must be an invention of ancient immortals?
The old man instructed him on some precautions, then extended his hand: “Alright, return it to me; others need to use it too.”
He Lingchuan quickly said, “Besides the basic heart method, I also want to use military merit to exchange for divine abilities.”
“Divine abilities are divided into ‘techniques’ and ‘martial arts’.” The old man in white pointed to himself, “I’m Mr. Ying, in charge of the ‘martial arts’ division.”
He then pointed to the old man in black: “He is Mr. Man, in charge of the ‘techniques’ division.”
“Divine abilities are not divided into good or bad, only suitable or unsuitable,” Mr. Ying said. “You practice the Zi Wu Jue, which is suitable for entering the Dao through martial arts. In the later stages, you can integrate and practice some techniques.”
Mr. Man nodded in agreement: “As long as you live a little longer.”
At that moment, Mr. Ying listed a long list of books for He Lingchuan, who was dazzled by the options, thinking that this one was good, and that one was practical.
Mr. Ying then said, “The military merit you have accumulated is only enough to exchange for two divine abilities.”
Then why did you lay out over a hundred sets of techniques in front of me? He Lingchuan smiled humbly: “Mr. Ying, please teach me.”
“The essence of combat boils down to two points: being able to fight and being able to run.” Mr. Ying pondered for a moment, “I’ll choose a movement technique for you called ‘Yan Hui’. If you can practice it to be as light as a swallow, this technique will reach great success.”
Mr. Man added, “Basic techniques emphasize solidity; a solid foundation is necessary to stand undefeated. Don’t think it’s simple; General Hong is also proficient in the ‘Yan Hui’ technique.”
He Lingchuan’s eyes lit up: “General Hong practices this too?”
“Of course. He personally copied it and recorded it into the jade slip.”
“I want it!”
However, He Lingchuan thought for a moment and pointed to the list of techniques: “Then, how many divine abilities did General Hong record in total?”
“Eighteen.” Mr. Man did not hide it from him. “The rest, you can’t afford.”
He Lingchuan became even more fascinated: “Then I’ll trouble Mr. Ying to help me find another divine ability that can fight.”
Mr. Ying looked at the long knife at He Lingchuan’s waist, turned to discuss a few words with Mr. Man, and then said, “Then let’s choose ‘Lang Zhan’.”
The old man stood up and rummaged in the inner room for a long time before finally pulling out two jade slips.
He Lingchuan took them, focused his mind to memorize them, and then respectfully returned them.
Mr. Man said from the side, “Once you master these two techniques, come find me again. The combination of techniques and martial arts can create remarkable achievements.”
“By the way, Lord Zhong requested that the Xianwen Hall regularly invite experts to teach classes; listening more will yield rewards.” Mr. Ying added, “Although divine abilities and techniques are good, they are merely external forces. The key to success or failure often lies in the heart.”
He Lingchuan stood solemnly: “Please instruct me, sir.”
“Heart method, heart realm,” Mr. Ying said. “Heart methods require diligent study and practice; the heart realm requires life and death experiences.”
After several battles, He Lingchuan deeply understood these two phrases.
He respectfully thanked them and turned to leave the Zhi Zhen Office.
Crossing the threshold of the Meritorious Service Department, he couldn’t help but take a deep breath.
The verse left by the old turtle demon required him to conceal his sharpness and guard his clumsiness in reality.
Therefore, his first step into the hall would begin from his dreams!
(End of "Xianling" volume, the next chapter begins a new篇)
(End of chapter)