Chapter 56 - 55: Obtaining the Broken Jade Skill in Advance

Chapter 56: Chapter 55: Obtaining the Broken Jade Skill in Advance

The next day.

At the Xu Family Martial Arts Hall.

Today, its doors were closed to guests. However, the familiar sound of knocking still rang out at the entrance.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.

As the knocks echoed, the breathing of the person behind the door noticeably grew heavier.

Hearing the heavy breathing, Zheng Jun said very calmly, "I have come as promised. Open the door.

"I can hear you breathing inside."

At his words, the fat guy with a fierce, heavy-set face could only slowly push the door open. He looked at Zheng Jun, hesitating to speak.

"Where is Hall Master Xu?" Zheng Jun asked.

"My master is on the arena ring," the fat guy quickly replied. "He has been waiting for a long time."

Hearing the fat guy’s answer, Zheng Jun couldn’t help but feel a little surprised. He wondered, "Is he actually taking the initiative this time?"

Without any hesitation, Zheng Jun made his way toward the arena ring with the practiced ease of walking into his own home. There, he saw Xu Tianfang standing with his hands behind his back. Dressed entirely in white, he looked quite the part of a reclusive expert.

Below the ring, the apprentices of the Martial Arts Hall remained completely silent.

They had watched this exact same drama unfold three times in a row now.

Seeing Zheng Jun, Xu Tianfang couldn’t help but let out a deep sigh. He then adopted the starting stance of his Hand Skill and said, "Captain Zheng, bring it on."

His face was ashen, as if he had accepted his fate.

He thought, "Let’s just fight. Beating him up for half a two-hour block isn’t exactly technically demanding anyway.

"On the contrary, I can use this chance to refine my Mountain-Opening Palm.

"The ultimate price is just taking a single retaliatory punch at the end."

Seeing Xu Tianfang being so straightforward, Zheng Jun didn’t waste time. He leaped onto the ring and instantly circulated his Hard Qi Skill. His muscles bulged, and the thick veins beneath his skin writhed like snakes. As the profound True Qi within his limbs and bones erupted, a faint layer of qi vaguely shimmered over the surface of his skin.

BAM!

Seeing that Zheng Jun’s Hard Qi Skill was fully active, Xu Tianfang didn’t hesitate. He immediately brought down his Mountain-Opening Palm with a Chop, carrying enough force to shatter rocks.

Palm after palm struck Zheng Jun’s chest, ringing out like a great temple bell and producing a muffled boom akin to clashing metal.

Half a two-hour block later, Xu Tianfang’s True Qi was completely depleted, and his strength was failing.

He thought, "Time’s up." Then, he found a posture that was most conducive to being sent flying by a punch and waited for the impact.

However, to his surprise, the expected weightless sensation of being launched backward never came. He was still standing exactly where he was, completely untouched.

"Huh?" Taken aback, Xu Tianfang opened his eyes and looked at Zheng Jun, only to see that the younger man had already retracted his Hard Qi Skill and looked to be in quite a good mood.

Noticing Xu Tianfang looking his way, Zheng Jun smiled and said, "Hall Master Xu, your Divine Skill is truly incredible. You beat me so badly that I couldn’t even fight back. I am in total awe."

With that, Zheng Jun jumped right off the ring and added, "I just remembered I have some matters to attend to at home, so I’ll be taking my leave now. If we have some free time in the future, I will definitely come over to share a few drinks with Hall Master Xu."

Having said his piece, Zheng Jun turned and left.

Watching this unfold, Xu Tianfang was dumbfounded. He wondered, "What’s going on this time? Why didn’t he hit me?"

For a moment, Xu Tianfang genuinely questioned if he was a glutton for punishment. When the guy didn’t punch him, he actually felt that something was wrong.

But soon, he perked up entirely. He leaned toward the fierce-faced fat guy nearby and whispered, "Quick, spread the word! Zheng San and I have fought three fierce battles: two losses and one draw! We are evenly matched!"

"Master, this..." The fat guy was confused. He lowered his voice and said, "Master, why demean yourself like this? What others discuss in private is their own business. If you actively admit to this, it’s inevitable that the youths in the county who admire Martial Arts will look down on you..."

Even though most people had exceedingly mediocre talent and the Xu Family Martial Arts Hall was more than qualified to teach them, young people were always ambitious. They would rather be the tail of a lion than the head of a dog. If this reputation spread, it might cause their enrollment rates to drop.

Xu Tianfang shot the fat guy a glance and chuckled. "What do you know? For Zheng San to be this powerful at such a young age, he is bound for great things within ten years! Once he achieves greatness, what will we amount to? You have to look to the future. Later on, when Zheng San’s divine fists are invincible, people will remember that there is still a Martial Arts Hall in Black Mountain County that managed to fight him to a draw!

"Tell the apprentices who graduate from our hall to fully cooperate with Zheng San if they ever encounter him in the future. Never make things difficult for him! Also, keep an eye on the County Soldiers’ recruitment. If any volunteers loyally join Zheng San’s ranks, they will definitely have a bright future ahead of them!"

Sitting at a roadside tea stall, Zheng Jun sipped his tea while looking at the small ink-wash text floating before his eyes, unable to hold back a smile.

The repayment was finally complete!

[Attacked. Hard Qi Skill repayment progress +647. Current repayment progress: 2,500/2,500.]

[Hard Qi Skill repayment complete.]

However, right after those two lines of ink-wash text appeared, an earth-shattering change occurred within his mind. The ink-wash characters shifted in accordance with his will. Once the ink faded, he focused his gaze and immediately saw the Great Tao Martial Book—which recorded the essence of all Martial Arts in the world—radiating with brilliant light!

Between its pages, currents of air churned, as if the invisible true voice of the Great Tao was echoing from within.

[Currently advanced Martial Arts: None.]

[Advanceable Martial Arts: Cloak and Dagger Technique (Perfection), Wave-Treading Blade Technique (Great Success), Iron Sand Demon Suppression Skill (Minor Achievement), Eagle-Hawk Force (Great Success), Broken Jade Skill (Mastery).]

[Currently mastered Martial Arts: Cloak and Dagger (Great Success), Wave-Treading Saber (Minor Achievement), Eagle-Hawk Force (Mastery), Ma Family Fist (Great Success), Hard Qi Skill (Great Success).]

[Current traits: Blade Skill Consolidation, Versatile Dexterity, Momentum like a Rainbow, Wave-Treading Blade Intent.]

[Remaining advanceable Martial Arts quota: 2/2.]

Looking at the systematic presentation of the Great Tao Martial Book before him, Zheng Jun immediately sensed that something was different.

First of all, when he previously took an advance on the Eagle-Hawk Force, he could only advance it to Minor Achievement, not Great Success. When taking an advance on the Broken Jade Skill, he could only reach the entry level, not Mastery.

Now, the limits had actually increased by an entire Realm!

Realizing this, a surge of joy swelled in his heart. He thought, "I didn’t expect that the promotion of the Great Tao Martial Book would also elevate the Realms of the advanceable Martial Arts.

"Oh my god, my credit card limit has gone up!"

Suppressing his joy, Zheng Jun downed his tea, laid out a few copper coins from his sleeve, and eagerly rushed back home.

Right now, he only had one thought on his mind: to take an advance on the Broken Jade Skill!

After quickly returning to his small thatched courtyard, Zheng Jun didn’t hesitate for a second. He directly selected the Great Tao Martial Book!

[Do you wish to take an advance on ’Broken Jade Skill (Mastery)’? Because you are borrowing the Fruit of the Future, you must practice the martial form a thousand times before it can truly become your own.]

Seeing the small ink-wash text before him, Zheng Jun didn’t waver at all. He commanded in his mind, "Advance!"

As the word "Advance" surfaced, Zheng Jun instantly felt a surge of Spiritual Qi rush straight into his mind.

[Advance successful!]