Chapter 387 - 145: An Extremely Difficult yet Immensely Powerful True Skill
When he encountered techniques with similar styles, he would linger for a moment, carefully studying their cultivation essentials. However, after browsing for a long while, he still hadn’t found a martial art that satisfied him.
As time passed, Yang Jing slowly walked from the second floor to the third floor.
The space on the third floor was noticeably smaller than the second, and the number of manuals on the bookshelves was also much smaller.
Stored here were all martial arts at the Mid-grade True Skill level. In the outside world, any single one of these would be enough to make various small and medium-sized sects and factions fight to the death over it.
Yang Jing briefly flipped through the various martial arts, getting a feel for their styles, but in the end, his gaze fell upon the three martial arts mentioned by the Peak Master.
He first picked up Mountain-Breaking Seal. The Cultivation Technique’s essentials were written on the title page.
The essentials were largely the same as what the Peak Master had said. The Mountain-Breaking Seal was ever-changing; it could be based on fists or palms, and even finger techniques could activate it. It was powerful and adaptable to many situations.
Next, he carefully examined Mountain Shaking Technique and Star-Breaking Sword.
Yang Jing placed the manuals for these three martial arts side by side on a table, repeatedly comparing and studying them. He analyzed them one by one, considering their power, characteristics, practical applications, and cultivation methods.
He pondered for a long time before finally reaching out and picking up the manual for Mountain-Breaking Seal, having already made up his mind.
He chose this martial art, on one hand, because of the Peak Master’s strong recommendation.
The Peak Master’s Cultivation was profound and her judgment was sharp. Her recommendation surely came from a unique consideration, far beyond the understanding of a new Inner Sect Disciple like himself.
On the other hand, after comparison, Yang Jing found that among the three martial arts, the Mountain-Breaking Seal likely had the most formidable power. It wasn’t limited to a single type of move—fists, palms, fingers, arms, and legs could all form the seal, making it adaptable to combat in various environments and far more practical.
Beyond that, Yang Jing also noticed the exchange prices marked on the back of each martial art manual.
The Mountain-Breaking Seal’s exchange price was the highest, requiring a full one hundred fifty-five thousand contribution points.
The Mountain Shaking Technique was next, at one hundred eighteen thousand contribution points.
The Star-Breaking Sword was the lowest, yet still required one hundred nine thousand contribution points.
Within the sect, the exchange price of a martial art was often tied to its value. The higher the price, the stronger the martial art.
Although the manual for the Mountain-Breaking Seal recorded that while this Cultivation Technique’s power was great, its cultivation bottlenecks were incredibly tough. The difficulty of breaking through far surpassed other martial arts of the same grade. Cultivators would often get stuck at a certain realm, unable to advance.
But this point was of no concern to him at all.
Having made his decision, Yang Jing no longer hesitated in the slightest.
He returned the partial manuals of Mountain Shaking Technique and Star-Breaking Sword to their original places on the shelf. Then, cradling the partial manual of Mountain-Breaking Seal, he turned and descended the creaking wooden stairs, one step at a time.
Arriving at the main entrance on the first floor of the Talent Pavilion, the middle-aged Steward was sitting behind a desk, holding a cup of warm tea and sipping it slowly. His gaze was fixed on the stone steps outside the door, as if his mind was wandering.
Hearing footsteps, the middle-aged Steward put down his teacup, looked up at the approaching Yang Jing, and asked nonchalantly, "Made your choice?"
Yang Jing nodded quickly and bowed. "Yes, Steward. This disciple has made his choice."
As he spoke, he respectfully offered the partial manual of Mountain-Breaking Seal with both hands.
The middle-aged Steward took the manual. His gaze fell on the three powerful words on the cover, and his brow furrowed slightly.
He looked up at Yang Jing, his tone carrying a serious warning. "I have to give you a piece of advice. This Mountain-Breaking Seal might seem formidably powerful, and its killing power can even rival a Top-grade True Skill. However, it is extremely difficult to cultivate; it’s considered one of the hardest martial arts of its grade to master.
"Many exceptionally talented disciples in the sect have tried to cultivate it, but most of them got stuck at various bottlenecks, unable to advance the Cultivation Technique to a high level. In the end, they had no choice but to switch to a different martial art, wasting several years of cultivation time. Are you sure you still want to choose this one?"
Hearing this, Yang Jing knew the Steward was looking out for him.
He bowed again. "Thank you for your kind reminder, Steward. I understand the difficulties, but I still wish to give it a try."
Seeing that Yang Jing had made up his mind, the middle-aged Steward’s expression softened slightly. He stopped trying to persuade him and simply waved his hand. "Wait here."
As soon as he finished speaking, the middle-aged Steward rose and walked toward the stairs, his steps steady as he ascended to the third floor.
In just a moment, he returned, holding a small, blue-covered booklet.
The booklet was about the size of a palm. The three small words for Mountain-Breaking Seal were written on the cover in cinnabar ink, and the seal of the Xuanzhen Sect was stamped in the corner.
The middle-aged Steward handed the booklet to Yang Jing. "This is the complete first volume of the Mountain-Breaking Seal. If you are fortunate enough to break through to the Qi Eating Realm, you can come back to receive the subsequent parts."
Yang Jing quickly accepted the booklet with both hands. A thrill of excitement shot through him as his fingertips felt the cool touch of the cover.
He bowed deeply to the middle-aged Steward, his voice filled with gratitude. "Thank you, Steward!"
The middle-aged Steward waved his hand, returned to the desk, and picked up a brush and ink to write in a thick registration book.
First, he registered Yang Jing’s name and affiliation, Lingxi Peak. Then, he wrote down the name of the martial art received: "Mountain-Breaking Seal, First Volume."
Finally, he made a special note in the remarks column: "First-time collection by a new Inner Sect Disciple."
After finishing, the middle-aged Steward closed the register and said to Yang Jing, "Alright, you may go."
Yang Jing bowed in thanks again, then carefully tucked the first volume of the Mountain-Breaking Seal securely inside his robes.
Only then did he turn and walk out of the Talent Pavilion. Looking up at the sky, he was startled to find the sun hanging high overhead, its brilliant golden light spilling warmly onto his shoulders.
It turned out that while he was browsing the martial arts manuals in the Talent Pavilion, half a day had passed without him noticing. It was already noon.
Yang Jing subconsciously touched his stomach, feeling a slight pang of hunger.
He had originally planned to go to the dining hall for something to eat, but after taking just two steps, he suddenly remembered that he had arranged for meal delivery with the dining hall manager that morning. For just fifty contribution points a month, all three meals would be delivered to the entrance of Qing No. 4 Courtyard.
With that thought, he changed direction, no longer heading for the dining hall, but walking straight toward Lingxi Peak instead.
His pace quickened, the excitement in his heart irrepressible. He couldn’t wait to start cultivating Mountain-Breaking Seal.
He had already made a plan. After lunch, he would immediately go to a Level C Training Room on Lingxi Peak and devote himself completely to cultivating Mountain-Breaking Seal.
He had to race against time, striving to master the basics of this Cultivation Technique as quickly as possible and then break through to the Qi Eating Realm in one go.
He had yearned for that realm for far too long.
Bright Strength, Dark Strength, and Transformation—these three stages all belonged to the Inner Strength Level. They involved cultivating the body’s physical power and refining the muscles, bones, and skin.
But once he took that step and entered the Qi Eating Realm, it would be a true qualitative transformation!
Leaping from the Inner Strength Level to the Inner Qi Level meant drawing Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi into the body, tempering the internal organs, and condensing Inner Qi. Every move would be filled with the immense Power of Essence.
This barrier had blocked countless sect disciples.
Even those with outstanding talent often had to spend several years, or even longer, just to barely succeed in breaking through.
Even more were trapped at the Peak of Transformation for their entire lives, unable to advance a single inch.
But the more difficult it was, the more Yang Jing’s heart burned with urgent desire for this realm with its incredibly tough bottleneck.
He desperately wanted to feel the sensation of Inner Qi flowing through his limbs and bones, and he desperately wanted to stand on a higher step of the Martial Dao, to look down upon the scenery he once had to look up to.