Chapter 35: Blind Princess’ Eight Practices, Planted Successfully!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
After seeing off Mu Wanqiu, Jiang He continued to copy more cultivation manuals. When he finished copying the six folds of qinggong dictated by the Shaolin monk, he fabricated the seventh and eighth folds himself out of his twisted sense of humor.
“I wonder if I can grow the cultivation method I made up. It would be interesting if I could.”
Jiang He ordered Dumbo to dig a hole and planted the Breezing Smoke Flight, before going to the spot where the ashes of his qi pellet tree were spread. There were not actually much ashes—they only covered around five squared meters of ground.
Just two hours after sprinkling his bag of carrot seeds over it, dense formations of sprouts had already appeared on the ground. He would probably be able to harvest them in the evening.
“I wonder if the carrots will have any special effects...”
As Jiang He forced himself to eat a cuc.u.mber, he turned towards the spot where he planted Breezing Smoke Flight to find that a small shoot had grown out of the ground.
It was a weird shoot, since it looked like a thick, short wooden chopping block. A bundle of catkin that was the size of a cotton-candy hung over it, and it only drooped when it continued growing up to over a meter in diameter.
“Planting Breezing Smoke Flight is a success!”
Delighted, Jiang He went up and parted the catkin to find an aged book with a blue cover lying silently inside.
[Ding!]
[+500 Farm Points]
There were four golden words stamped on the cover. Curved like a dragon, its golden nooks were p.r.o.nounced like steel, and its presence extraordinary. And yet, Jiang He almost flung it away after a glance at its actual t.i.tle.
“Blind! Princess! Eight... Practices?”
Stumbling a few steps back and clutching his chest, Jiang He scowled as he muttered, “I only added two extra folds as a twisted joke. How did it become the Blind Princess’ Eight Practices?”
How was he to explain it to others if he really learned it?
‘Wow, your qinggong is so cool! What is that martial arts, bro?”
‘Blind Princess’ Eight Practices.”
Just imagining that scene was enough to make Jiang He shudder.
“Forget it. Everything can wait until after I’ve learned it. I can just avoid letting on that it’s the Blind Princess’ Eight Practices in the future.”
[Ding!]
[Intermediate-level posture—Blind Princess’ Eight Practices—detected in farm. Host, would you like to consume 1,000 Farm Points to learn it?]
“A thousand points? That much?” complained Jiang Fei. “Fine, learn.”
A crisp System notification sounded in his head once more.
[-1,000 Farm Points]
[Congratulations, Host. You have gained Mastery over the first fold of the Blind Princess’ Eight Practices.]
Jiang He shuddered. He felt everything... all the information surging into his mind.
“The first fold of the Blind Princess’ Eight Practices? Cultivated up to Mastery, and I can tread over water... isn’t that just Walking Over Water?”
Jiang He was overjoyed. Fortunately, his cultivation didn’t require wooden planks, or he would have to prepare one before fighting in the future.
He took a step.
Whoosh!
In just a split second, he had moved more than ten meters. In the next instant, Jiang He’s figure moved again, twirling and bounding in the yard, leaving afterimages in his wake. His body was like a phantom—extremely agile. Indeed, he almost resembled the Bat King Wei Yixiao whenever he used his qinggong.
“Not bad, not bad. My fighting ability will rise to the next level with this posture. But I’m still a far cry from being able to kill a rank-seven Feral... I must get a weapon before that!”
With that thought, Jiang He whipped out another qi pellet and swallowed it. He had to develop himself while he still could endure it, and he couldn’t afford any delay in improving his cultivation. While downing pills was soulless and dull, Jiang He felt a craving if he didn’t down the pellets.
“I still have that Moonblade from Cordo, although I’m not a fan of that design... I should take a trip to the Bureau and see if I can get a combat knife, since it would be much more devastating against Ferals compared to being unarmed.”
After having a few words with Dumbo and Trumbo, Jiang He then called Duan Tianhe and asked for his address before leaving.
***
Old Jiancai, Linzhou City.
Three years ago, after Jiancai had moved location within Linzhou City, the nation had implemented new projects and restructuring at this spot. Now, there were over a dozen towering buildings here, and surveillance systems were installed everywhere, with martial artists taking the role of guards outside the buildings.
And just recently, a signboard reading ‘Linzhou City Martial Arts Department’ was put up outside the entrance to Old Linzhou. When Jiang He got out of his taxi, he couldn’t help frowning as he studied the signboard.
“Even the signboard is already up. Looks like it won’t be long now before the country makes the announcement...”
One could imagine how the entire country would be affected once the Revival of Qi was announced. No, it would not just be the Hua Nation—the whole world would be shocked. It was only natural.
A tall woman greeted Jiang He when he reached the building, although he felt uninterested after a glance at her. Those huge things must be from plastic surgery, right? What a pity. He could have promoted his corn.
The woman was a little on the older side, probably in her late thirties or so. But at this age, she would be known as mature, having sensed the vicissitudes of life.
She walked over to Jiang He, offering him a handshake and a smile. “Greetings, Mister Jiang. I’m Bai Feifei, team leader Duan has asked me to escort you.”
“Oh, Bai Feifei?” Jiang He shook her hand, smiling. “w.a.n.g Siyu has mentioned you. You’re her master, right?”
Baifeifei quickly waved him off, saying, “I’ve only guided her to the Bureau at best. I wouldn’t claim the t.i.tle of master.”
After all, she is from the martial arts world, a place where the t.i.tle of ‘master’ was not so easily given.
As they walked towards a building, Jiang He asked about the Martial Arts Department, to which Bai Feifei replied, “There has been movement up top to change the Bureau’s name to the Martial Arts Department. Our task is to fight Ferals and protect the citizens, while also looking for martial arts elites or superhumans amongst the public. After all, not every martial artist or superhuman would show their powers after their Awakening, and those sly foxes are a much greater hidden threat than Ferals...”
Jiang He had a weird look on his face as Bai Feifei rambled on casually.
Was he imagining things?
He must be.
But why did he feel like she was talking about him when she said ‘sly fox’?
“By the way, Mister Jiang...” said Bai Feifei, lowering her voice, “With the opening of the Martial Arts Department in Linzhou City, the higher-ups have sent a martial artist. He’s a disciple of the Eight Trigrams School and is close to Su Zhe... He has a short temper, and he isn’t happy about how you beat up Su Zhe, which was why team leader Duan had me take you to look around first...”
“Hmmm?” Jiang He’s eyes twitched as he asked, “A disciple of the Eight Trigrams School? Is he good?”
“Rank-six pinnacle. A martial arts elite of the same level as team leader Duan.”
It seemed that Bai Feifei didn’t know that Duan Tianhe was rank-seven now.
Jiang He’s eyes sparkled, but soon quickly shook his head and muttered to himself, “Nope. I’m probably a few qi pellets away from rank-four pinnacle, and at least fifty away from ascending up to rank-five. Wouldn’t a rank-six pinnacle wipe the floor with me?”
Smiling, he then said, “Alright. This Martial Arts Department is quite vast, and I’m thinking about taking a good look for myself.”
Even as he spoke, he took out a qi pellet and ate it.
Uh-huh, he should have more.
He would probably be a rank-five after his visit was completed.
When that was done, he would look for the disciple of the Eight Trigrams School and spar with him, just to test if he could kill a rank-six Feral.