Chapter 201: Chapter 176: The Silver Borrowed through Strength_1
Was there a day when he, Wang Lin, also got so lucky?
Once he breaks through the Martial Marquis level, he will rise among ordinary people. In the martial arts world, he will be held high, bringing honor to his ancestors.
Were the two mutated nine-section heart meats, worth 80,000 taels of silver, really given to him just like that?
His eyes filled with tears, he choked, "Master, even if I have to walk on knife’s edge or dive into a sea of flames, I, Wang Lin, won’t flinch."
Lu Yan patted Wang Lin’s shoulder, smiling, "We’ve known each other for more than a decade, no need for such words. Just focus on your breakthrough."
Wang Lin left with Lu Yan, entering the practice room and focused on his breakthrough.
With the aid of two mutated nine-section heart meats, barring any accidents, Wang Lin should successfully break through within a few days. After a little over ten days, his cultivation level will be completely stable.
Thus, under Lu Yan’s command, there were finally two Martial Marquis.
Moreover, both of them were loyal and dependable.
Having two Marquis to command martial arts troops and stabilise Changfeng City would be enough. With this, Lu Yan’s burden was significantly lighter, allowing him to focus more on his martial arts practice.
Lu Yan first improved his primary knife technique, which had reached 90% transcendence, to the Unity of Man and Martial Arts level.
In this way, the number of primary martial arts he had brought to the Unity of Man and Martial Arts level startlingly reached eleven.
Eleven primary martial arts had allowed him to quicken his practice speed even more.
Spring went and autumn came, quivering between cold and heat, another year passed in a blink.
In this year, Liu Zhenshuo did not appear, seeming to have disappeared into thin air.
Those of the Liu Family, including the original high-rank members, were all the same.
Lu Yan’s cultivation level steadily progressed forward, advancing towards Martial Marquis level five at the peak.
The cost was that there were six fewer level-two Blood Armor Lizards in the blood land vein.
Only four adults were left.
There were also four little ones and a few that were adolescence, not yet fully grown.
Lu Yan planned to spare these and let the beast trainer carefully raise them.
After a year of exploration, the beast trainer had initially found a suitable beast food formula for the Blood Armor Lizard.
After the Blood Armor Lizard consumes it, their growth rate can be accelerated.
Of course, the formula was still incomplete. As it continually improves with time, the growth rate of the Blood Armor Lizard will progressively quicken.
On the other hand, spending over a hundred thousand silver on level-two martial food almost depleted Lu Yan’s wallet.
Just as he was worrying about this, Li Quan brought him a piece of pleasant news.
He discovered a Martial Marquis level feudal lord who possessed and bred level-two mutated beasts and an applicable formula.
Lu Yan immediately set out, disguised as a middle-aged man in his fifties, to visit the feudal lord.
When Lu Yan mentioned his intention to purchase the level two mutated beast and the beast food recipe, the feudal lord initially sternly rejected him.
However, after Lu Yan had a ’friendly discussion’ with him, he suddenly became much more reasonable and ’willingly’ agreed on the deal.
Lu Yan didn’t have much silver left and directly swapped two pounds of mutated heart meat with the feudal lord.
"Why not borrow two primary knife techniques, making it a total of nine techniques, and also borrow some silver?" Lu Yan pondered.
Currently, he had seven primary knife techniques that had reached the Unity of Man and Martial Arts level.
Nine is the ultimate number.
He wasn’t sure if those nine primary knife techniques could merge to form an ultimate knife technique.
But decided to partake in a few more, starting with the cultivation of his Martial Arts Avatar.
In the future, he might acquire Dao Food and instantly elevate to the Unity of Man and Martial Arts level.
With the mutated beast and beast food formula in hand, he returned to Changfeng City. Li Quan handed over detailed information about those Martial Marquis level feudal lords in lingdong’s six counties.
In the past year, Li Quan had investigated a large number of Martial Marquis level feudal lords to figure out who had level-two mutated beasts and beast food formulas. He didn’t mention Li’an County, as it was too far.
Li Quan had almost thorough investigation results of the closer Nanyi County, Qingfeng County and Da’an County’s feudal lords.
He had a rough idea of each lord’s specialty in the martial art and their overall strength.
After going through the information once, a plan formed in Lu Yan’s mind.
He then set off in disguise immediately.
The first feudal lord’s residence he visited was located within Li’an County. They didn’t possess any primary knife technique. So, Lu Yan mainly intended to ’borrow silver’.
These feudal lords were very generous. After witnessing Lu Yan exhibit his unrivalled combat power, they ’lent’ Lu Yan 20,000 taels of silver with open arms.
Subsequently, Lu Yan turned to Qingfeng County, visiting over a dozen Marquis level feudal lords consecutively.
After over two months, he had gotten two primary knife techniques and consolidated his Martial Arts Avatar.
Those feudal lords who did not possess any primary knife techniques were also visited by Lu Yan for the purpose of borrowing silver.
Every feudal lord was amiable, generous and opened their purse for him. Some ’lent’ him 10,000 taels, some 20,000 taels and some even 30,000 taels of silver.
Lu Yan vowed on the spot that he was temporarily short on cash, but as soon as he was well-off, he would certainly repay them.
Lu Yan wasn’t just making small talk, he seriously planned to repay them. As he borrowed each sum, he would take out his book and note down the debt in front of them.
Despite taking loans by capitalizing on his prowess, he bore no grudges or grievances with these feudal lords, and never considered defaulting on his debts.
He resorted to this only to enhance his cultivation level out of necessity.
Of course, him going around ’borrowing money’ like this did stir up the master level feudal lords.
On one occasion when he visited a Marquis level feudal lord to borrow silver, a master was waiting there for him.
But after Lu Yan’s punch sent the master flying tens of meters back, no more masters stood in his way.
Why was there anything to be ridiculed about a Master humbly going from place to place to borrow silver? He hadn’t committed any crimes.
By the time Lu Yan returned to Changfeng City, he had nearly three hundred thousand extra taels of silver in his parcel.
"With this amount of silver, I can buy more level-two alien beast meat for Zhou Clan’s Martial Chefs to cook, and combine it with purchased level-two martial food. This should be enough for me to cultivate to the peak of Martial Marquis Level Five. If it isn’t, should I go borrow some more?" Lu Yan thought to himself.
...
In Baicao City, within Li Wenxuan’s residence, in a secret stone chamber.
Li Wenxuan was seated opposite a middle-aged woman.
"Have you broken through?"
The middle-aged woman looked at Li Wenxuan, her eyes brightening.
"Yes, I have broken through to Master level, one year later than expected," Li Wenxuan said.
"Becoming a Master isn’t as easy as you make it sound. Even if you follow the Martial Spirit path, without the aid of martial food, it’s still not easy to succeed. The fact that you managed to break through is already quite remarkable. In this regard, that old guy, Liu Zhenshuo, was truly lucky," the middle-aged woman said.
Li Wenxuan sneered internally.
When the middle-aged woman initially invited him to join the Spirit Sect, she had promised that he would become a Grandmaster within five years. This was different from the current circumstances.
However, he had indeed become a Grandmaster now, so he didn’t bother arguing over her previous words.
"I’ve already broken through. Should I make a move now? That old fart Li Xingyuan has lived long enough and has been working for the Li Family for many years. It’s time for him to rest."
Li Wenxuan said, his eyes cold.
The middle-aged woman shook her head and said, "It’s not yet time. The arrangements on the side of the Spirit Sect are not yet finalized. Once everything is ready, we can make a move. By then, the six counties of Lingdong will be ours."
"How much longer do we need?"
"Within a year, depending on the situation."
The middle-aged woman replied.
In the blink of an eye, another half a year passed.
Lu Yan’s cultivation level gradually approached the pinnacle of Level Five.
...
Mandarin Duck Peak, a common mountain outside Baicao City.
At the peak, there was a solitary grave, with all the weeds cleared away.
An old figure was sitting next to the solitary grave, looking over Baicao City from afar.
From this angle, one could see the whole Baicao City.
The old man was Li Xingyun, the patriarch of the Li Family.
The one buried in the grave was his wife, who had passed away 150 years ago.
They met on Mandarin Duck Peak, and she wished to be buried here—to forever watch over Baicao City.
After so many years, no one in the Li Family remembered this solitary grave except for him. He often came to sit here for a whole day.
The older he got, the more nostalgic he became.
Today was the anniversary of her death.
"Time flies so fast. It’s been 150 years already. My dear, I don’t have much life left. I will join you soon. However, the Li Family still lacks a promising figure. I can’t rest at ease."
Li Xingyun sighed lightly.
The setting sun cast a red glow across the sky.
Suddenly, Li Xingyun turned around as he felt something. He saw a burly figure carrying a basket and heading this way.
"Wenxuan, what brings you here?"
Li Xingyun was surprised.
The person was surprisingly Li Wenxuan.
"Elder, I am here to pay my respects to Grandmother."
Li Wenxuan put down the basket, which was filled with simple fruits and fish.
After lighting the incense sticks and candles, Li Wenxuan respectfully bowed three times in front of the grave.
"Wenxuan, you are thoughtful." Li Xingyun nodded appreciatively.
Meanwhile, he felt somewhat complicated.
Li Wenxuan’s talent was ultimately not comparable to Li Wenxin’s.
"Elder, there’s something I’ve been wanting to ask for a long time. May I ask it today?"
Li Wenxuan asked.
"What is it? Feel free to speak your mind." Li Xingyun replied.
"Elder, the Rank Two Mutated Beast that our family owns is about to mature. I wonder if you have decided who to give the Ink Jade Heart Orb once it’s cooked—me or Li Wenxin?"
Li Wenxuan asked.
Li Xingyun frowned.
Given Li Wenxuan’s intelligence, why would he ask this question outright?
"I’m still considering who to give it to. I haven’t decided yet."
Li Xingyun answered.
"Elder, there’s no need to hold back. You can speak frankly. I have already made up my mind. If you plan to give it to Li Wenxin, then I’d rather go out on adventures to hone myself. I believe that even without the aid of Martial Food, I can still walk the path of a Grandmaster in the future."
There was a gleam in Li Wenxuan’s eyes, brimming with unyielding confidence.
"Excellent! What a spirited young man you are. Indeed, you are a worthy son of the Li Family. It’s not necessary to rely solely on Martial Food for one to breakthrough to the Grandmaster level. Your thought process is admirable."
A proud smile appeared on Li Xingyun’s face, baring a trace of remorse.
There was only one Heart Orb. He had to choose.
"So you agree, Elder?"
Li Wenxuan asked.
"Yes. You can go on an adventure for a couple of years. Initially, had it not been for the turmoil caused by the evil beasts, I had planned to send you to the Shengxuan Sect. Now, this plan needs to be put on hold. You can travel around the six counties of Lingdong a few years to temper your willpower. When things settle down, it won’t be too late to attend the Shengxuan Sect."
Li Xingyun responded.
"Thank you, Elder."
Li Wenxuan bowed with his fist.
At that moment, his eyes flashed with murderous intent.
So, this old fart never intended to give him the Ink Jade Heart Orb.
Using him as a stepping stone for Li Wenxin? To temper Li Wenxin?
Damn him.
By the time he raised his head again, the murderous intent in his eyes had disappeared.
"Elder, this is the token to lead the army. It’s useless to carry it around while adventuring. I will return it to you first."
Li Wenxuan took out a token from his pocket. He stepped forward, reached Li Xingyun, and handed the token over with both hands.
Li Xingyun reached out to take it.
Just as he reached out, Li Wenxuan suddenly launched an attack. His inner strength burst out as he furiously struck at Li Xingyun.
Li Xingyun had not expected that Li Wenxuan would suddenly try to kill him.
It was too late for him to evade.
In this critical moment, he could only unleash his inner strength to protect his body.
Thud!
Li Wenxuan’s palms forcefully hit Li Xingyun’s chest.
