“The secret to wielding a saber boils down to just two thing—steady hands and accurate eyes. Aim for the head, slash down, and if the saber doesn’t slip from your grip, you’ve already won half the battle.”
“Look at your amateur saber technique.”
“Your eyes lack accuracy, and your grip lacks steadiness. Not a single movement looks decent.”
“Do it again!”
………..
The sun hung high in the sky. The county yamen’s drill ground was already bustling with activity. However, unlike usual, many veteran constables were nowhere to be seen.
“They all went to hunt down that White Lotus rebel.”
Liu Ye puffed on his pipe while continuing to instruct Wang Ping’s movements. He grumbled, “It’s a sudden windfall, after all. What constable wouldn’t be tempted?”
“That rebel broke into the yamen last night and was shot clean through by the Lord’s arrow in front of everyone. His skin, flesh, sinews, and bones shattered. He lost more than half his blood, and his marrow isn’t doing any better. Even with external perfection, he probably can’t even exert a tenth of his strength right now. It’s the perfect opportunity to kick a dog while it’s down.”
Hearing this, Wang Ping couldn’t help but ask, “Master Liu, aren’t you tempted?”
“Of course not.”
Liu Ye’s tone remained flat. “Little Wang, I see you have potential. I’ll teach you something today. Do you know the most important trait for a constable?”
“What is it?” Wang Ping asked curiously.
“Restraint!”
Liu Ye emphasized his tone, “No matter if the sky falls and the earth crumbles, I remain restrained and unmoved. Even if the sky falls, it crushes the tall guys first. It won’t hit you or me.”
“Kid, remember this. This world belongs to the strong. For nobodies like us, if we want to survive, we must learn how to survive in the cracks… To put it bluntly, only do things far below your capabilities. That way, you ensure success and leave plenty of room for error.”
“Take me, for example.”
“In the entire yamen, almost all the constables collect protection fees inside the city, lining their pockets. I’m the only one who goes to the grass market outside the city to earn some pocket change.”
“Why?”
At this, Liu Ye looked smug. “Because outside the city is safe! The real experts all stay inside the city. Collecting protection fees carries risks.”
“After all, this business is dishonorable. We profit off the blood and sweat of others.”
“One misstep, and you might run into some hot-headed young hero seeking justice. A young, hot-blooded guy doesn’t know restraint—he might just beat you to death!”
“Don’t doubt it; we have precedents in the yamen!”
“However, the grass market outside the city avoids such troubles. You won’t find any formidable figures there. I don’t collect much, so while I earn less, it wins in safety.”
“Take our current situation, for instance.”
Liu Ye seemed to have opened a floodgate, talking endlessly:
“Without a doubt, what happened last night was a clash across space between that White Lotus Cult Master and our Lord Chen. Is that something we can casually join?”
“What if, on the way to catch that rebel, we run into the White Lotus Cult Master coming to the rescue?”
“If you’re lucky, Lord Chen arrives in time to save you, and you end up crippled for life. If you’re unlucky, they’ll just send a pension to your family.”
Wang Ping instantly understood.
“Bait…”
Liu Ye nodded slightly. “As long as you understand. In short, I’m not wading into these muddy waters. Reel in your thoughts, kid, and obediently practice your saber.”
Wang Ping nodded, then let out a long breath.
Exhaling this breath seemed to expel all the restlessness in his heart. Wang Ping’s demeanor steadied, and he resumed practicing the saber technique.
Liu Ye watched with appreciation.
He really does have a bright future. He listens to advice and can restrain his greed. It looks like he’ll truly cross the threshold of 【Three Demonic Sabers of Yama】 in less than three days.
Speaking of which, how is his practice of the 【Iron Bull Technique】 coming along?
He hasn’t gone to the Danfeng Brothel yet…
Liu Ye pondered, confident he understood Wang Ping’s mindset. He’s probably worried because he’s a virgin. Afraid his gate won’t hold and he’ll lose control after a few thrusts?
So he wants to cross the threshold first to improve his abilities before actual combat… Young men care about their pride; it makes sense!
Thinking of this, Liu Ye chuckled inwardly.
Naive kid. How could crossing the threshold be so easy?
Given the difficulty and intensity of the 【Iron Bull Technique】, wanting to cross the threshold in one night would require practicing seventeen or eighteen times. Even a young man couldn’t endure that.
…………
“I’ll aim to practice another hundred times tonight!”
After finishing the drill, returning home, and eating the meal delivered from Yuelai Restaurant, Wang Ping closed his doors and windows again. He sat upright on his bed, preparing to fake it and practice hard.
Just as Liu Ye predicted.
Despite his youthful body, by his third attempt, Wang Ping’s face had already turned quite pale. His hands trembled slightly.
However, the next second, he took a deep breath. He intertwined his fingers and formed a bizarre hand seal. A spark suddenly erupted from his fingertips, flickering in the dim room before flowing through his entire body like water, revitalizing his physical form.
The spell, 【Qi Ward】!
Although he lost his Lishi body and his 【Qi Ward】 could no longer make him invulnerable to weapons, it could still stop bleeding, regenerate flesh, and restore his body.
It proved especially useful for practicing martial arts.
The hard-earned True Qi might be small in quantity, but it remained more than enough to replenish deficits and rapidly restore his exhausted essence, qi, and spirit.
Therefore, Wang Ping’s progress in the 【Iron Bull Technique】 far exceeded Liu Ye’s imagination.
It was only the second day, yet he had already reached the minor achievement stage. A conservative estimate placed him reaching great perfection in this martial art within seven days at the latest.
“Continue!”
Wang Ping gritted his teeth and threw himself back into his martial arts practice. As for the city-wide manhunt and the White Lotus rebel, he tossed all of it to the back of his mind.
A moment later, Wang Ping succeeded again.
As the technique circulated once more, Wang Ping felt his soul abruptly leave his body. Casting aside all stray thoughts, he entered a state of absolute clarity and inaction.
“Now!”
Without hesitation, seizing this rare opening, Wang Ping grabbed the ox-tail saber beside him and executed the combat method of 【Three Demonic Sabers of Yama】.
Clang!
The long saber left its sheath. Instantly, an overwhelmingly intense thought flooded Wang Ping’s mind alongside the blade’s hum, turning his eyes bloodshot.
It was—Greed!
Money, women, power—the desire to possess everything in the world at any cost, to fight, to snatch. It was a desire that epitomized the inherent evil of human nature!
As Wang Ping swung the saber according to the combat method of 【Three Demonic Sabers of Yama】 and circulated his qi and blood following the corresponding breathing method, this emotion grew increasingly severe.
It resonated faintly with the ox-tail saber in his hand, causing more blood vessels to pop in his eyes. His rationality faced a massive onslaught.
“What a demonic saber!”
The next second, Wang Ping held his breath. Relying on the relaxed state of mind obtained after his training, he barely managed to suppress the desire and returned the ox-tail saber to its sheath.
When he recovered his senses, he found himself drenched in sweat.
“I see… I understand now.”
Looking at the long saber in his hand, enlightenment bloomed in Wang Ping’s heart. “Greed. The process of being bombarded by this emotion is actually the process of the technique modifying my body.”
“Only by staying lucid during this process.”
“Using rationality to suppress the desire and remaining unaffected can maximize the body modification effects, resulting in a better outcome upon crossing the threshold of the saber technique.”
With this thought, Wang Ping immediately made a decision.
No rush… to cross the threshold just yet.
In all fairness, with the 【Iron Bull Technique】 as a foundation and the rapid recovery provided by 【Qi Ward】, he felt confident he could cross the threshold of the saber technique right now.
However, crossing the threshold using this method would likely only condense the lowest-grade snake-dragon sinews. It offered speed, yes, but proved detrimental to his future development.
If he didn’t have a cheat, he would just settle for what he could get. But since he had a cheat, he naturally had to set his sights further.
No rush. Take it slow.
My 【Iron Bull Technique】 hasn’t reached perfection yet. Little Brother isn’t fast enough or ruthless enough. I cannot maintain the relaxed state long enough to counter the saber intent of greed.
Wang Ping planned internally while continuing his training.
As the saying goes, towering buildings rise from the ground. If he couldn’t achieve the best in martial arts, wouldn’t cultivating immortality be a complete pipe dream?
Once the 【Iron Bull Technique】 reaches perfection, I can practice the 【Desire Realm Innate Method】 and undergo a complete rebirth. When I use a cultivator’s physique to practice martial arts and cross the saber technique’s threshold, the results shouldn’t fall short of those geniuses with superb innate talent. At the very least, my baseline should be flood dragon sinews.
Regardless, now was the time to lay low and scale up.
No reckless moves!
…………
Longxing County, Outer City.
Following Chen Haoyan’s order, Longxing County officially locked down. Entry was permitted, but exit was forbidden. Dozens, perhaps over a hundred constables conducted a house-to-house search for the White Lotus rebel.
However, after searching for most of the day, they didn’t find the rebel Xie Shi. Instead, they accidentally uncovered a horde of fugitives, throwing the entire county town into chaos.
“Damn it, I knew I shouldn’t have listened to that old fogey…”
In a secluded alley in the outer city, Xie Shi hid in the shadows, wrapping his tattered clothes tightly around himself.
He primarily protected a fist-sized wound on his lower abdomen.
Through the wound, one could even faintly see his internal organs.
“【Heaven-Shaking Cloud-Piercing Bow】…”
Xie Shi gritted his teeth. His skin, flesh, sinews, and bones stung agonizingly. He bled profusely, and a sense of severe deficit constantly emanated from his body.
Skin, flesh, sinews, bones, blood, marrow—none were spared.
The six corresponding weapons all shattered, to the point where he couldn’t even exert ten percent of his martial arts. He was essentially half-dead.
“What do I do next?”
Waiting for rescue… was out of the question. Given that old fogey’s personality, he would never risk walking into a trap to save him in the county town.
He had to save himself.
After much deliberation, Xie Shi could only think of one path. “The branch of the Imperial Court’s fangshi, the Wandering Spirit Perfected One, in the north of the city should be able to protect me in my current state.”
Although the yamen stood as a behemoth in Longxing County, it didn’t hold absolute supremacy. Setting aside the White Lotus Cult outside the city, even within the city walls, there were entities the yamen was unwilling to provoke.
The 【Wandering Spirit Temple】 in the north of the city was one such place. Even with a city-wide manhunt, no one dared search there.
And currently, the 【Wandering Spirit Temple】 was recruiting servants.
“As long as I find a way to sneak in, I can evade the pursuit of those black-robed hounds.” Xie Shi calculated internally, but his brows quickly furrowed with worry.
The problem lay in the 【Wandering Spirit Temple】’s recruitment criteria.
They had to be beautiful women.
Thinking of this, Xie Shi felt immense despair toward this superficial world. After all, a burly, rugged man with a face full of fierce flesh could never be considered a beautiful woman.
Unless—
Xie Shi’s eyes flickered. Back when he searched for martial arts to achieve external perfection, he found an unorthodox technique perfectly suited for this situation.
【Shape-Shifting and Disguise Art】
This unclassified martial art lacked a corresponding weapon. Upon reaching perfection, the signature technique it condensed was called 【One Person, A Thousand Faces】, allowing for disguise and body modification.
Not only could it change facial features, but it could also alter one’s figure and build at will. Women could grow beards, and men could enlarge their chests. Aside from actually changing one’s biological sex, there were almost no limits to the visual alterations. With this martial art, he should easily meet the 【Wandering Spirit Temple】’s recruitment criteria.
But… what did a beautiful woman look like?
Xie Shi felt a headache coming on. Memories of beautiful women he had seen flashed through his mind, but without a real person in front of him, perfectly recreating a disguise from imagination proved incredibly difficult.
“…I need to find a real person as a reference.”
Where did the most beautiful women gather?
With this thought, Xie Shi looked up. His gaze immediately locked onto the tallest, most prosperous, and brightly lit building in the city.
……………
Danfeng Brothel.
Regarding Longxing County’s largest entertainment venue, Wang Ping only had one phrase to describe it—Massive.
Inside the brightly lit tall building, the clamor never ceased. Crowds mingled and sought pleasure—wealthy squires, scholars, and even officials.
However, Wang Ping didn’t pay attention to these people. His gaze went straight to the woman sitting on the highest central stage, playing a zither and singing. Even on the drill ground, he had heard other constables mention her title; she was the most famous courtesan in Longxing County.
She plucked the zither strings lightly, like a gentle breeze brushing against willow branches. Her red lips parted slightly, resembling a nightingale heralding spring.
Although Wang Ping wasn’t a lecher, he was still captivated at first glance. Undeniably, becoming a top courtesan required genuine skill.
In terms of appearance, her carefully adorned jade-like face was second to none.
In terms of aura, she exuded the demeanor of a noble lady from a distinguished family.
Yet, she wore a sheer dress. Her bodice pushed her cleavage into two snowy peaks, half-hidden and half-exposed, the bottomless ravine culminating in a dark line.
To sum it up:
A worldly stunner and dream lover, with a slender, supple waist; waking from a fragrant bed canopy, makeup fresh and wine rich, blushing cheeks like spring apricot blossoms; full of charm, she loves holding a sheer silk fan, smiling as she covers her red lips.
“Lady Qingfeng’s singing is truly beautiful.”
“It’s a pity she’s still a pure courtesan. We can’t hear what kind of wondrous sounds she makes on a bed…”
“Hah, you vulgar brute, daring to use such filthy words…”
Retracting his gaze, Wang Ping stopped paying attention to the courtesan and the clamor surrounding her. After all, having trained bitterly for half a month, he came here on serious business.
The next second, Wang Ping strode toward a corner of the building.
There, a beautiful woman was busy giving orders. Although she was clearly older, her sweeping glances couldn’t hide the charm in her eyes.
“Lady Feng.”
Wang Ping, having done ample research beforehand, called out directly to the beautiful woman and got straight to the point. “My name is Wang Ping. Master Liu sent me.”
As he spoke, he patted the ox-tail saber at his waist.
Although he wasn’t wearing his black-and-red constable uniform, the unique design of the ox-tail saber was enough to prove his identity.
“…So it’s Little Brother Wang!”
The Danfeng Brothel’s madam froze for a moment, then seemingly recalled something and immediately smiled. “Master Liu gave the instructions. Please, come this way, Little Brother.”
Before long, Wang Ping followed Lady Feng into a private room.
“Little Brother acquired the 【Iron Bull Technique】 and plans to practice, right?” Lady Feng’s tone was relaxed. Her words clearly showed her unusual relationship with Liu Ye.
She then looked Wang Ping up and down.
Seeing Wang Ping’s seemingly unimposing physique and somewhat young face, a hint of teasing amusement surfaced in Lady Feng’s eyes.
“Since you’ve just started practicing the 【Iron Bull Technique】, Little Brother, it’s not good to overwork yourself. How about this? I’ll invite three girls over first to let you warm up, how does that sound?”
“Three? Who are you looking down on?”
Wang Ping scoffed coldly. He immediately circulated his perfected 【Iron Bull Technique】, bolstered by the 【Golden Spear Never Falls】 signature technique, and said seriously: “I want to fight ten!”