Back ho, Qin Hanyue had bought so at and prepared a lavish dinner. Years of hardship had transford the once-delicate young lady into a capable and loving mother. Her cooking was so masterful that even Qin Xue, who had been trained in the culinary arts since childhood, was full of praise.
Qin Li savored every bite. He knew that while his mother had so silver coins, their funds were far from abundant. His years of martial arts training had long ago drained the resources of their already modest household. If he couldn’t start earning money soon, their lives would beco truly difficult.
"Sis Qin Xue, I’m leaving soon. I’m counting on you to look after our ho," Qin Li said, looking up at Qin Xue with a serious expression.
"Oh, Young Master, please don’t call ’Sis.’ I am not worthy of such an address," Qin Xue said hastily, a blush creeping onto her cheeks.
"There’s nothing to be unworthy of. It’s just a title. No one is born noble."
Reflecting on her own experiences over the years, Qin Hanyue sighed softly and said to Qin Xue, "If you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to take you as my goddaughter. I’d love to have a daughter like you," she finished with a light chuckle.
Qin Xue was stunned for a mont before her eyes began to well up. She nodded repeatedly. "I’m willing, of course I’m willing! I’ve been an orphan my whole life. If you don’t think I’m overstepping my place, then of course I’d be overjoyed!"
"Great! Now I’ll have an older sister too!" Qin Li laughed happily. In Qin Xue, he saw a reflection of his forr self. ’An orphan... Anyone who hasn’t lived that life could never understand what it’s like to miss your parents.’
Qin Xue rose to her feet with great solemnity, knelt before Qin Hanyue, and kowtowed three tis. Then, with eyes brimming with tears, she called out, "Mother!"
Qin Hanyue helped Qin Xue to her feet and wiped a tear from the corner of her own eye. "Yes, my dear daughter!" she said, smiling happily.
Night fell. From a distance, the humble ho glowed with a dim, yellow light, yet it radiated an air of peace and contentnt. Anyone passing by would feel its warmth.
The next day, Qin Li rose early, careful not to disturb his mother and Qin Xue. ’Once you’ve made a decision, you have to follow through without looking back. That is a man’s responsibility!’
Just after Qin Li’s figure vanished from sight, Qin Hanyue and Qin Xue erged from the house, already fully dressed. They leaned against the gate of their dilapidated little courtyard, gazing wistfully in the direction he had gone.
After a long while, Qin Xue finally said, "Mother, let’s go back inside. The morning dew is heavy; you’ll catch a chill."
Qin Hanyue nodded, pressing her lips together, unwilling to show her vulnerable side again. ’That son of mine, who once only knew how to bury his head in his training, has finally grown up. He’s matured and beco so considerate! He’s like a fledgling eagle, just beginning to test its wings against the vast blue sky. My role, as his mother, is to bless him silently from the sidelines, not to keep sheltering him beneath my own wings.’
’An eagle must one day soar through the heavens!’
Based on his understanding of Martial Arts from his past life, Qin Li finally grasped the true power of the Only I am Venerable Combat Skill. This skill could rge with any other combat technique and unleash even greater might! Of course, the real credit for this lay with the Basic Techniques, but Qin Li was not yet aware of this fact.
On the Celestial Essence Continent, it was not unusual for a Martial Artist to master multiple combat skills. It was just as the saying goes: you can never have too many skills.
However, martial artists feared becoming a "jack of all trades, master of none." For this reason, a Martial Artist typically cultivated only one or two combat skills, and at most, no more than three or five. These skills generally had very little connection to one another.
The Only I am Venerable Combat Skill, however, was like a virus. It could infect and assimilate any other combat skill one learned. The difference was, for a Martial Artist, this "virus" was the stuff of dreams! It would cause the power of every single combat skill they learned to increase exponentially.
This was especially true for soone like Qin Li, who had already mastered many forms of Martial Arts. He had originally felt so regret that the Internal and External Martial Arts he practiced in his past life were useless in this world. But now, they had all been transford into combat skills—and combat skills that were entirely unique to this world, at that!
This was simply exhilarating!
After dinner the previous night, while comparing notes with Qin Xue, Qin Li had also co to understand the gap between Basic, Interdiate, High, and Divine-level Combat Skills.
To put it simply, Primordial Power was the foundation and combat skills were the moves. The Cultivation Technique contained within a combat skill, in turn, determined its Five Elents Attribute.
For example, once a Martial Artist mastered a Fire Attribute Saber Technique, as long as they could supply enough Primordial Power, every single slash could unleash a skill imbued with the Fire Attribute.
The difference between Basic, Interdiate, High, and Divine-level Combat Skills was equivalent to the purity of this fire. As is commonly known, the colors of a fla corresponding to its temperature, from low to high, are: red, orange, yellow, yellow-white, white, blue-white, and blue.
A Basic-level combat skill was like a red or orange fla. When one began cultivating, it was red; upon reaching a certain realm, it would turn orange. Interdiate Combat Skills were akin to yellow or yellow-white flas, High-Level skills were white or blue-white, and Divine Level... was pure blue!
Divine-level Combat Skills rarely circulated on the Celestial Essence Continent; most existed only in legend. Of course, the Celestial Essence Continent was imnse, and no one could say for sure how many hidden, mysterious sects and peerless powerhouses were out there. But for the average person, Divine-level Combat Skills were too fantastical, as ethereal and elusive as the rumored whereabouts of Martial Artists who had broken through to the Celestial Level.
As for the Only I am Venerable Combat Skill, even though it was labeled as Divine Level, by now, no one took it seriously. In the minds of most Martial Artists, even practicing a Basic-level combat skill was a hundred tis better than attempting to cultivate it.
Each ti one underwent Nirvana, their strength would plumt. Soone originally at the Earth Level might fall all the way back to the Profound Level. They might be a little stronger than before they started practicing the Only I am Venerable Cultivation Technique, but the damage to one’s soul could never be fully repaired by Nirvana! The so-called Nirvana was rely a self-preservation chanism.
Over many years, countless people had proven this fact with their lives. The matter was no longer up for debate.
Thus, Qin Li’s luck was simply enviable. As for Waterlon, who for so reason had also practiced this Cultivation Technique and then crossed paths with Qin Li—that was without a doubt the greatest fortune of his life.
Qin Li knew that his ability to jump to the fourth rank of the Profound Level in a single stroke wasn’t because he was a genius, but because the foundation of his body was exceptionally solid. It was a perfect example of gradual accumulation leading to a sudden breakthrough.
With so many fortunate opportunities converging at once, a breakthrough was almost inevitable.
When he arrived at the entrance of the Hunter Guild, there were few people around. It was still early for his appointed eting with Hu, so Qin Li simply sat down on the steps, closed his eyes, and began to cultivate. ’Diligence is always the foundation of success. The Innate Purple Qi isn’t available every day, but I can’t let my cultivation slide.’
Just as Qin Li was settling into his ditation, he suddenly felt a powerful, resentful aura lock onto him. Startled, Qin Li’s eyes flew open, only to see Qin Yong, the steward who had been expelled from the Qin Family, staring at him with a venomous gaze. ’What a coincidence... What’s he doing here?’ Qin Li thought.
As the Qin Family was a Hunter Clan, its mbers were naturally very familiar with the Hunter Guild. Ever since Qin Yong had been expelled, he had often co here to take on missions for money. For the forr steward of the Qin Family, making a living wasn’t particularly difficult. The humiliation of his expulsion, however, was a bitterness he could never let go of.
To think he would run into that little bastard Qin Li here today. A savage grin spread across Qin Yong’s face as he strode toward Qin Li.
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