"Understood... so this cultivation technique actually has a significant flaw..." Zhang Rongfang felt sowhat regretful.
"As long as you understand. If you must practice, you can just practice the first realm. This way, the damage to the body is much less." Yue Dewen nodded.
"I understand." Zhang Rongfang responded.
"Alright, I’ve given you the token, and I’ll be off now. If you have any questions and I’m not around, you can write a note in the small building. I’ll reply when I see it."
Before the voice had fallen, Yue Dewen had disappeared without a trace.
The speed of his body technique was so fast that Zhang Rongfang didn’t feel a thing.
He wasn’t too surprised.
He rely turned around, looking at the Golden Toad Skill, a hint of contemplation in his eyes.
This Moon King, years ago, already had far surpassing advanced thinking, integrating the martial arts system to create such a marvelous skill.
One can imagine the brilliance and power of the Sensing Sect back in those days.
’No matter what, a reduction in life span is the greatest drawback for others, but for ... as long as I have enough attribute points, I can stack life with life!’
He decisively picked up the printed edition of this cultivation technique. Standing up, he left the Wuyun Pavilion.
Having found the cultivation technique, next, he planned to test its effects.
In the current situation, even if the Spirit Gathering Talisman reaches its limit, it’s at most a Super Grade, not even a Grandmaster, and couldn’t achieve anything in the current scenario.
To do a good job, one must first sharpen one’s tools. Taking advantage of the Great Dao Teaching’s Ancestral Court’s convenient conditions, completing matters related to attribute points is key.
In the following days.
Zhang Rongfang poured his whole heart into the first phase of the Golden Toad Skill every day.
The first realm, nad Hidden Moon, has three layers.
The First Layer strengthens the intestinal muscles using ordinary drugs,
The second layer amplifies the resistance of the stomach’s inner walls to strong acid using rare drugs.
The third layer uses precious dicines to greatly enhance the digestive ability of gastric juices.
Of course, the original text is not like this, this is the principle summarized by Zhang Rongfang.
Just in ti, during these days, he gained a few new attribute points.
Added with the previous ones, he had a full five points!
As long as he gets started on this Golden Toad Skill, it can be rapidly elevated to high realms.
*
*
*
In late July, when sumr was hot.
Inside a small building in the Celestial Treasure Palace.
Zhang Rongfang sat cross-legged, with more than a dozen various types of dicines laid out before him.
So were liquids, so were powders, and there were also pill-sized dicines.
Large and small bottles were labeled with the nas of the dicines and the order of consumption.
"The first layer requires fifteen different precious drugs for assistance... this Golden Toad Skill, truly warrants the ’golden’ in its na... it really burns money..."
Zhang Rongfang shook his head slightly.
He had found another reason why no one practiced this cultivation technique.
It’s a money burner!
Just these dicines before him cost several thousand taels. And almost all were purchased externally.
Only a very few, two of them, were concocted by himself.
Because they were so rare, they weren’t even available for sale.
"These are supposed to be ordinary drugs ntioned in the records... it seems the Sensing Sect back then was indeed wealthy...."
He sighed, picked up the first bottle, opened it, and poured the dicine.
Then the second, third...
One by one, he ingested the dicines, always keeping an eye on the fluctuations of his life points.
Swallowing so many dicines at once, it was impossible not to be apprehensive.
But thinking about the terrifying aspects of the Spiritual Veins, he gritted his teeth and continued.
Not long after, all the dicines had been ingested.
Zhang Rongfang slowly moved his abdon according to the Golden Toad Skill records, feeling the heat generated by the dicine’s effects.
Then he guided the heat to flow through his intestines and stomach with his will.
Several minutes later, the guidance ended.
He started consuming a second round of the dicines.
For each practice, these dicines had to be consud once.
Ingesting so many dicines, it’s no wonder the lifespan decreased.
Ti passed by little by little.
Zhang Rongfang would take a fifteen-minute interval after each practice.
And by the fifth ti, finally, there was a slight change in the attribute column.
A new, clear skill appeared under the martial arts section.
"It’s done!" A glimpse of joy appeared in Zhang Rongfang’s eyes.
Looking at the words in the attribute column.
’Golden Toad Skill (Hidden Moon - First Layer Entry.)’
Without hesitation, he imagined clicking the plus sign next to the Golden Toad Skill.
In an instant, two attribute points disappeared in a blink.
And the words of the Golden Toad Skill quickly blurred and disappeared. Then new text slowly erged.
’Golden Toad Skill (Hidden Moon - First Layer Mastery.)’
In a flash, countless mories of sitting cross-legged in the small building, diligently practicing the cultivation technique while taking dicines, surged into Zhang Rongfang’s mind.
Three years of ti passed in an instant, and a massive amount of insights and experiences regarding the Golden Toad Skill also entered his mory.
Grr... grr...
Suddenly, a strange rumbling sound ca from his stomach.
An indescribable hunger spread throughout his body in an instant.
"So hungry....."
Zhang Rongfang imdiately felt the power of the Golden Toad Skill.
A rush of gastric acid surged through his stomach, saliva seeping profusely in his mouth. It felt as if he could eat a whole cow in one bite.
And in the attribute column, there was a noticeable reaction as well.
His life points jumped from 48 back to 47 in the blink of an eye.
"Amazing!"
Zhang Rongfang was not frightened but delighted; such a strong reaction clearly indicated that the effect of this Golden Toad Skill was powerful.
He imdiately clicked on the plus sign behind this cultivation technique again.
Swoosh.
Another two attribute points vanished.
The following text of the Golden Toad Skill changed once more.
The mastery of the first layer beca perfection.
Another surge of laborious practice mories poured into his mind.
With the flood of mories, life plunged again, dropping from 47 to 45 in an instant.
A faint cracking sound ca from Zhang Rongfang’s abdominal area.
An even stronger hunger spread throughout his body.
This ti, Zhang Rongfang did not hold back, rose, packed away all the dicines, and quickly went to the small building’s storage area for food.
Grabbing large chunks of dried at, he stuffed them directly into his mouth.
Sothing strange happened.
These jerky pieces were snacks collected by the Chongxuan Daoist to accompany tea. Although rich in flavor, they were extrely hard.
For the average person, biting into them was like chewing iron.
But in front of Zhang Rongfang at this mont, he casually stuffed them into his mouth and chewed a few tis.
The hard jerky was instantly crushed, turned into countless at bits that were then mixed and softened by saliva.
Zhang Rongfang’s teeth seed to beco even harder.
In a couple of swallows, he stuffed a full ten pounds of jerky into his stomach.
Gurgle... gurgle...
His stomach was still rumbling.
But that sense of hunger was slightly diminished.
"Not enough! Still not enough!!"
Imdiately, Zhang Rongfang hurried downstairs, rushing towards the direction of the Celestial Treasure Palace’s cafeteria.
An hour later....
He returned to the small building, full of food and drink.
His stomach was already filled with nearly fifteen pounds of rice and various ats and vegetables.
During this hour, he had been eating nonstop from start to finish, chewing slowly, never pausing.
"Sothing’s off...!"
As soon as Zhang Rongfang stepped onto the wooden planks of the small building, he faintly felt sothing different about his body.
Standing in the living room on the first floor, he paused and carefully sensed his whole body.
"Weight!"
"My weight has increased!"
Staring at his reflection in a nearby glass window, he noticed a slight difference.
His physique seed to have beco even stronger.
"And.... after eating so much, in the past, I’d surely have to go relieve myself. But up to this point, I’ve eaten over twenty pounds, and yet I don’t feel the need to at all...."
Combining this with the subtle changes in his physique, Zhang Rongfang had a vague feeling that he might have truly found the right path this ti.
This phenonon likely indicated that the efficiency of digestion and absorption of food had increased.
Although he had lost three points of life, next, he just had to wait and see when new attribute points would co in to know how effective it was.
Gazing at his reflection in the glass window, the worries and repression that had been accumulated in Zhang Rongfang’s heart were finally relieved a bit.
Replacing them was a new sense of anticipation.
Just achieving First Layer perfection brought such a significant change. He wondered what kind of transformation would occur if he fully mastered all three major realms of the Golden Toad Skill.
*
*
*
Torrential rain poured down, like lines of water hitting the ground, splashing up countless bursts of white mist.
Outside Yinhuai City, a hundred miles from the Great Capital.
A team of black carriages and horses moved at a steady pace, despite the heavy rain, heading away from the city.
The side of the carriage in the caravan bore the emblem of the Bai family trade caravan.
The goods in the caravan were covered with oilcloth, hiding a large number of items.
But no one could have guessed that the two elderly leaders wearing leather raincoats were Grandmasters who had left the Great Brightness Temple.
At this mont.
Zen Master Wuxin looked up at the misty official road ahead, and sighed lightly.
"The world is ever-changing, ups and downs are unpredictable. Who knows when we’ll be back next ti?"
"There will be hope... don’t worry, as long as the seed remains...." Monk Tanri beside him said with an expressionless face, continuously twirling Buddhist Beads in his hand.
The two exchanged a glance, seeing a hint of helplessness in each other’s eyes.
The most troubling thing was that the ssage got leaked about the three golden rings left by Celestial Maiden Tong Chapter before breaking through Extre Realm with dication.
Rumor has it that the three golden rings were the keys to the secrets of wealth accumulated by the Celestial Maiden over decades.
Once one found the three golden rings, they would gain three massive and priceless treasures.
The Celestial Maiden’s identity was complex; officially a master on the Black List, secretly serving the Eastern Sect.
She was also closely connected with Imperial Tutor Damir, a key figure in the Eastern Sect, and a formidable Sensing Sect practitioner.
Such a person, without any kin for decades, had amassed vast wealth and resources whose whereabouts were unknown.
Therefore, the three golden rings she left behind attracted the covetous gaze of many factions.
And it was Zen Master Wuxin and Monk Tanri who bore the responsibility of secretly escorting these three golden rings, given to them by the Celestial Maiden, to the Eastern Sect’s seed persons after departing the Great Capital.
Though the Eastern Sect had fallen, as long as the seeds remained, there was hope for revival in the future.
The two felt a heavy heart, knowing this departure likely marked the permanent exit of the Eastern Sect from the historical stage.
"Masters, slipping away from the Great Capital in such a concealed manner, it seems like you found our hospitality unsatisfactory...."
Suddenly, a voice faint and distant ca rapidly closer.
Zen Master Wuxin and Monk Tanri’s faces changed simultaneously, stepping aside to grasp two monk staffs from the carriage.
With a rustle, unknown when, a figure appeared under the heavy rain ahead of the caravan.
The figure held a black umbrella, grasping a steel cane in one hand, draped in a black mamba robe, with white hair and beard, exuding a majestic aura akin to a Spirit Court prince.
"Yan Xi of the Sensing Sect!"
Zen Master Wuxin’s pupils contracted, his grip on the monk staff tightened.
The Sensing Sect had splintered into over a dozen factions years ago.
After years of internal conflict, many masters had, with ti, grown old and retired, or died.
But so extended their martial lifespans by worshipping spirits, achieving strength comparable to Grandmasters.
Yan Xi was among them.
King Yan, Yan Xi, was his title.
Symbolizing his body technique like the king of swallows, nimble and spry, killing with one swift motion like a swallow skimming water.
"Just you alone can’t stop us. Let the others co out as well." Monk Tanri said in a deep voice.
The sound of rain couldn’t drown his voice.
No one replied.
But naturally, from the side of the caravan’s rear, figures quietly stepped out one by one.
All of them wore leather cloaks against the rain.
On these cloaks, so bore the pure white chain of Celestial Lock Teaching, others embroidered with the pure black tai chi of the Sensing Sect’s Taiqing branch.
Additionally, a song echoed far away.
"Spring’s breeze and thriving peach and plum."
"Sumr’s lotus blooms in fields."
"Autumn frost flowers carpet the ground."
"Winter snow, white plum blossoms."
The four voices spread from four directions.
Accompanying them were four large figures with distinct postures and auras, rapidly approaching.
"The Sensing Sect’s Four Seasons Envoy.....!"
Zen Master Wuxin and Monk Tanri’s prior composure finally broke.
If it were only King Yan, they were confident they could drive him off.
But with four Grandmasters as capable as King Yan....
"Hand over the golden rings, reveal the whereabouts of the three seeds, and in the na of the Grandmaster, a path of survival will be spared for you."
King Yan said in a deep voice, stabbing his cane heavily into the ground.
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