Chapter 47: Mountain Bandits and Noble Houses

Chapter 47: Mountain Bandits and Lofty Gates

Zhao Changhe had long wished to leave this small pond, but had never been able to determine the exact moment of his departure, for he stayed here to accumulate cultivation, yet previously he could not predict how his cultivation would progress.

But now, that moment could be determined.

When he first crossed over, with not even a single technique to seek, Zhao Changhe never imagined he would be so calm about breaking through the third level of the Mystic Barrier within a few months. It had been only half a month since he broke through the second level, and already he was ambitiously planning for the third...

Consider that Instructor Sun and Fang Buping were only at the fourth level of the Mystic Barrier, both well into their thirties, having trained for over twenty years. Such cultivation was already elite throughout the vast martial world; Fang Buping could be a branch master, and Instructor Sun, as his right hand, was no less in status. Even Lin Feihu, also at the fourth level, had become a gang leader.

One level of the Mystic Barrier, one heaven—how many in this world wasted their lives without ever seeing the end?

Of course, this depended on individual talent and the quality of techniques; not everyone needed ten or twenty years. Yue Hongling, for instance, had reached the eighth level at nineteen—who knew what encounters she had in the martial world? People could not be compared.

Thus the world toils, while the hidden dragon lies in the abyss.

Xia Chichi, too, was naturally gifted, and from childhood had been taught supreme divine arts by her mother. At sixteen, she was already at the fourth or fifth level of the Mystic Barrier. After the fortune of the Azure Dragon Seal and the full nurturing of the Four Symbols Sect, it was entirely foreseeable that by eighteen or nineteen she would match Yue Hongling's level or even slightly surpass her.

But Zhao Changhe was originally not like that. Most people, including the master-level Vermilion Bird, judged his prospects as a young man past his prime who had betrayed his master—no future. Starting martial arts at nineteen, his foundation was too poor; reaching the third level of the Mystic Barrier might take at least ten years, perhaps never achieving it in a lifetime.

The Blood Fiend Art was nearly the only technique that could bypass the age disadvantage and instead take shortcuts through physical advantages, so no matter how many drawbacks, Zhao Changhe could not abandon it.

Originally, if he wanted to cultivate both internal and external, internal arts could not bypass this disadvantage. But then he encountered Xia Longyuan's legacy, which not only skipped the initiation process but was also a compatible technique. Perhaps in later stages it would still face the age disadvantage, but if he did not need it as his main technique to slowly grind through the Mystic Barrier, only as an aid for the Blood Fiend Art's breakthroughs and as an extra reserve of energy, then it was a shortcut among shortcuts.

With such advantages, why not attempt the third level of the Mystic Barrier? It might slow down later—who cares about that?

...

The mountain bandits discovered that the captive bride had run away. For days, the chieftain’s face was dark and gloomy, and the atmosphere in the stronghold was tense—no one dared to speak loudly.

Sigh, they knew that with Boss Zhao’s lack of husbandly authority, he would sooner or later fail to keep his woman in line.

Better not find such a pretty one in the future. What use is it if she looks like Yue Hongling? It’s not like he really married Yue Hongling. Speaking of which, with the boss’s painful example, even if the real Yue Hongling stood here, no one would dare take her. Just think how tragic the family status would be—if she ran off, what could you do?

The boss hasn’t spoken much these days, but it seems he’s turned sorrow into appetite. He eats like a horse—three pounds of meat and three big bowls of rice per meal. No idea how his stomach manages it. If the stronghold hadn’t gotten rich lately, his eating alone would have bankrupted the old camp.

After eating, he practices boxing, swordplay, archery, and does horse stances while lifting a stone lock weighing several hundred jin.

Then he goes inside for a medicinal bath. Even late at night, muffled screams can be heard from the room—it seems he’s increased the dosage of the bath.

Although he seems to do this every day, lately he’s been especially desperate.

After all, with his wife gone, he has one less outlet for his energy—no risk of being drained dry, right?

Who would imagine that Zhao Changhe was frantically absorbing nutrients to transform into the physical blood and qi needed for the third level of the Blood Fiend Art? He had only been training for a few months and already dared to think like this!

Zhao Changhe himself felt it wasn’t enough. Although he sensed the third-level barrier wouldn’t be too difficult, he had still underestimated the blood and qi intensity required between the second and third levels. At most, he had filled half of it. Relying on food and medicinal baths could only accumulate over time; achieving it in a short period was unlikely.

In essence, it was like bodybuilding—it never showed results in a short time.

But there was one significant difference from bodybuilding: if you had good medicine, you could directly fill the required blood and qi, much more effective than taking protein powder.

“Tie Zhu, any news on the medicine I asked you to find in town?”

“Boss, this Qi-Blood Powder you want—it’s not sold in town…”

“It’s normal that the finished medicine isn’t sold—this is a supplementary medicine recorded in our Blood Fiend Art. Why would others sell it? Are you a pig?” Zhao Changhe said irritably. “What about the herbs I listed? We can prepare it ourselves. It’s just decocting and making powder, not Taoist alchemy. What’s so hard about it?”

“There are herbs, but not many.” Tie Zhu pulled out a bundle. “Just these…”

Seeing the herbs, Zhao Changhe’s expression improved a bit, but he was still puzzled. “Why so few?”

“Uh, Branch Master Fang often buys this kind of medicine too, and he uses a lot.”

Zhao Changhe was taken aback, then scratched his head.

This probably wasn’t Fang Buping targeting him—if he were, he wouldn’t have left even this bundle. Rather, that branch all practiced related techniques, so everyone had demand, naturally consuming a lot. It was normal that little remained in this remote small town.

This was his own lack of foresight—he hadn’t stocked up on these medicines… But who could have anticipated planning to break through to the third level of the Mystic Barrier so soon? Even Fang Buping wouldn’t have imagined it, or he would have cleaned out the supply already…

“These will do for a few days. Use them for now. Go to some farther towns to look for me—a few days late doesn’t matter.” Zhao Changhe sighed. “She said that in training, one must avoid impatience. I’ve been a bit hasty these past few days.”

The bandits stole strange glances at their chieftain. A man whose wife had run away was truly pitiful—even after several days, he couldn’t stop mentioning her.

Zhao Changhe knew what these guys were thinking, but he didn’t bother to explain. He couldn’t exactly say that their captive bride back then was Yue Hongling, and she had naturally left after finishing her business. What nonsense would that be?

He picked up the medicine and silently went back to his room to prepare and decoct it, letting them talk.

It felt like every parting made one grow up a little.

In fact, after the New Year, he had technically grown a year older—twenty now…

He always felt that the few months spent in this world had made him grow up faster than several years before. Was this what they meant by the martial world’s years hastening one’s aging?

Zhao Changhe stared at the steam rising from the medicine pot and suddenly laughed to himself.

...

“Your cultivation these past few days has been fairly calm, not bouncing around like a rabbit like before.” Cui Yuanyong looked at his sister with a sigh. “If you could settle down and work hard, how could you still be only at the second level of the Mystic Barrier? The best talent in our family should have been you. Wasting your gift like this is truly a pity.”

“Alright, alright, you’ve been nagging since I was little, my ears are calloused. You all train well, that’s enough. Why should I train? It’s bitter, tiring, and boring.”

“If you were content like other girls with poetry, books, and needlework, and marry into a good family, that would be fine. But you want to catch thieves and bandits, thinking bounty hunting is fun, yet you don’t work hard… Isn’t that simply asking for death?”

“Who in the world would dare touch a member of the Cui family?”

“Chaotic times are coming. The Cui family name may not work everywhere. For one, the Four Symbols Sect would love to kill a Cui family member to sacrifice to their banner… Besides, your father and brother cannot protect you forever.” Cui Yuanyong sighed. “After the New Year, you’re sixteen. It’s time to grow up.”

“My birthday is at the end of the year! I’m still only fifteen, fifteen!”

“Fine, fine, fifteen.” Cui Yuanyong, unable to handle his sister, shook his head and handed her a pill. “Your progress these days is acceptable. If you can keep this up, you should be able to break through in about ten days, not the expected two months. This is a Clear Mystic Pill. Take it then, and it will stabilize your breakthrough.”

“Stingy, just one?”

“Fine, fine, I’ll give you three.” Cui Yuanyong sighed again. “The human heart is never satisfied… Zhao Changhe sent people to buy medicine in town, and even those low-grade herbs were pitifully scarce. You have top-grade pills at your disposal, yet you complain they’re too few.”

“What does he need medicine for? Is he sick?”

“If I’m not mistaken, he’s also seeking to break through to the third level.” Cui Yuanyong looked at his sister meaningfully. “He’s been training for about three months, relying on whatever the mountain stronghold had, once even fighting for scraps of meat.”

The girl’s eyes widened. “Impossible! This time, I will definitely be faster than him!”