Chapter Nine: Passing on the Art

Yi Kuang and Yi Hong breaking through to become first-rank martial artists came as no surprise to Yi Tian and the others. Their fathers or grandfathers were all powerful figures in the tribe, holding high status—some were leaders of the tribe’s warriors, others were chiefs of the Yi tribe, all commanding vast resources. That Yi Kuang and Yi Hong had advanced to the first rank within just two or three months was entirely expected.

“They probably took Essence Gathering Pills, otherwise there’s no way they could have cultivated so quickly,” Yi Feng said with a tinge of jealousy.

Essence Gathering Pills, after all, were refined from various spiritual herbs and contained immense, pure energy, greatly accelerating a martial artist’s cultivation. On the open market, a single pill fetched seventy gold coins—a price that was astronomical for ordinary martial artists, whose total wealth rarely exceeded a few hundred gold coins, most of which went to daily expenses, leaving little for savings.

Because of this, most martial artists ventured into the deep mountains to hunt fierce beasts and gather spiritual herbs, risking their lives for the chance to earn money for cultivation resources. The mortality rate was staggeringly high.

A single Essence Gathering Pill allowed Yi Kuang and Yi Hong to break through to the first rank in just two or three months. Normally, practicing a mid-grade human-level technique, it would take at least several months or even a year or two to make such progress, depending on one’s talent.

This made it clear just how critical resources were for cultivation.

“There’s nothing impressive about breaking through with pills. If you want to reach higher realms, you absolutely can’t rely on them. Otherwise, it will do more harm than good, and true greatness will always be out of reach,” Yi Li scoffed at the notion.

While pills could indeed speed up one’s progress, the more one consumed, the more toxic residues accumulated within the body, severely hindering future cultivation and making further breakthroughs even more difficult.

“Still, you can’t blame people for being short-sighted. The vast majority of practitioners will never reach the human level in their lifetimes. Out of a hundred thousand martial artists, not even one may break through. Pill toxins only become a problem at that level, so for most, the harm is negligible,” Yi Tian understood this well.

Everyone knew about the dangers of pill toxins, but since most martial artists would never reach the human level, it was hardly a concern. Only a select few, those who aspired to climb higher, were careful with their pill consumption, only taking them at critical moments to break through bottlenecks.

Consider that Black Dragon City had a population of several million, with tens of thousands of martial artists, yet not a single human-level master among them.

Yi Tian’s words left Yi Feng, Yi Shan, and the others feeling discouraged. With the help of pills and other resources, Yi Kuang and Yi Hong’s cultivation would soon far surpass their own, making any hope of catching up seem ever more remote.

Only Yi Li remained unchanged.

Looking at Yi Feng, Yi Shan, and Yi Li, Yi Tian said, “I have a way to make you stronger.”

“What?” Yi Li was the first to look up at Yi Tian, astonished and surprised.

Yi Feng and Yi Shan also stared in disbelief. Having grown up together, they knew Yi Tian’s background inside out; for him to claim now that he had a way to make them stronger was simply beyond their expectations.

“I have my own methods, but you must keep this secret—don’t tell a soul,” Yi Tian said with a serious tone.

His own strength was still too weak. He didn’t want others to know he could optimize cultivation techniques; if word got out, it would cause a huge commotion. If caught in the ensuing turmoil, he would lose all control over his fate.

However, Yi Tian had absolute trust in Yi Feng, Yi Shan, and Yi Li. Their strength would be a great support to him.

Yi Tian had them copy down their cultivation techniques, breathing exercises, and diagrams of the meridians through which their energies flowed.

Though confused, Yi Feng and the others followed his instructions to the letter.

For the next several days, Yi Tian made no moves at all, which left Yi Feng, Yi Shan, and Yi Li restless; they began to visit him frequently.

Five days later, Yi Tian used his avatars to practice the Savage Bull Mountain-Cleaving Technique, the Gale Tiger Domination Technique, and the Wind and Thunder Technique. With the help of his marvelous avatars, he corrected all the flaws and deficiencies in the meridian paths of the three techniques. What were originally only mid-grade human-level techniques, after his modifications, had become high-grade human-level techniques.

When Yi Feng and the others received the improved techniques from Yi Tian, they were utterly stunned.

Yi Tian explained the mysteries of the revised techniques to them, as well as the points they needed to pay special attention to. Even though he couldn’t give them the original texts, his hands-on instruction allowed Yi Feng, Yi Shan, and Yi Li to quickly master the new techniques.

The moment they began practicing, they were shocked to discover that their cultivation speed was at least five times faster than before.

Though they had been training with mid-grade human-level techniques, their comprehension and experience had never allowed them to truly grasp the essence; their true cultivation speed was only seventy or eighty percent of what was possible.

Now, with Yi Tian’s help, they were effectively training with high-grade human-level techniques, and their progress was much swifter.

“I’m confident I can break through to the first rank within a month!” Yi Feng’s confidence soared.

Yi Shan and Yi Li were equally excited and elated.

Yi Tian reminded them once more to keep everything secret. Only after they promised repeatedly did he leave.

In the days that followed, Aunt Hua and Aunt Tian suddenly noticed that their sons were training more diligently than ever.

Having passed the improved techniques on to his friends, Yi Tian prepared to break through to the second rank himself.

At the peak of the first rank, his dantian space was already filled to the brim with blazing true energy. Lately, he’d felt faint tremors within, a clear sign that a transformation was about to occur.

After the dantian’s first transformation, its space would expand, allowing it to hold even more true energy.

From the first to the ninth rank, the higher the rank, the more refined the true energy. Thus, high-ranking martial artists would always outmatch those of lower rank in combat.

Half a month later, one afternoon, Yi Tian’s dantian began to hum and tremble, as if breaking free from its shackles. Suddenly, it expanded outward, growing sevenfold in an instant.

His dantian now spanned a space ten miles wide, like a small lake.

Upon reaching the second rank, Yi Tian quietly left the tribe and tested his strength. His physical power had soared to 1,300 pounds.

With his blazing true energy, a single punch felled a centuries-old tree that would have taken two people to encircle, leaving the trunk charred black.

He was certain that even a dangerous-grade beast would suffer grievous wounds from such a blow.

With his breakthrough and the surge in true energy, Yi Tian could finally perform the sixth level of the Wave Stacking Secret Art.

The Wave Stacking Secret Art, consisting of twelve levels, was a peerless secret technique from the Divine Arrow Manual. It was a method for manipulating true energy, causing it to surge and stack like waves, unleashing devastating power or attacks. However, it consumed an enormous amount of energy, and mastering higher levels required both insight and abundant true energy.

Even though Yi Tian’s avatars had optimized the Wave Stacking Secret Art’s energy pathways, allowing him to perform higher levels, his true energy was still insufficient to go beyond the sixth level for now.

“In combat, movement techniques and martial skills are incredibly important. Unfortunately, the tribe possesses none—no movement or martial skills at all. The Divine Arrow Manual might be the tribe’s only, and strongest, technique.”

Every warrior in the Yi tribe trained in archery, making their combat power formidable. Even low-ranking warriors could slay higher-ranked opponents with their archery, causing all nearby powers to regard the Yi tribe with caution.

“If I get the chance, I must buy a sword. That way, even if someone gets close, I won’t be forced into hand-to-hand combat.”

Yi Tian was already planning ahead, keenly aware of his own shortcomings.