Apocalypse Gachapon

Chapter 1986: Tranquil Breath Art

Ye Zhongming shrugged. Regarding this behavior of the Library Palace, to be honest, he did not feel dissatisfied at all; instead, he felt very comfortable.

At least, the Library Palace was very upright and aboveboard.

They directly informed Ye Zhongming that, with his permission level, except for the ʼTop Book Pavilionʼ, he could access and read all the books in all other places.

Moreover, except for not being able to take them away or copy them, he could do anything he wanted.

This feeling of having no restrictions whatsoever was very good.

Ye Zhongming stood on the stone platform and looked at it. There were ten grooves on it, and next to each groove was a pattern.

Among the ten districts of the Library Palace, some were divided by era; this was the main classification method, occupying seven districts. The other three included two, which were the Manufacturing District and the History District, and the last one was the Special District.

In Round Spearʼs introduction, the Special District primarily consisted of scrolls and books with content that required verification, was limited to conjecture, or was incomplete and incomprehensible, making it the most inconspicuous district in the Library Palace.

Ye Zhongming looked at the ten districts, thought for a while, and first chose the Manufacturing District.

He planned to spend one day looking at what was recorded here. It would be great if there were manufacturing techniques of the Taros Red Dwarves.
Although Ye Zhongming knew it was unlikely, even if there were some before, he estimated that with the decline of the Library Palace, they had probably long since taken their books back.

Ye Zhongmingʼs figure, like Round Spearʼs, disappeared from the stone platform.

………………………………

At the same time, on the platform of a small building with a beautiful rooftop in the very center of the Library Palace complex, over three hundred people sat cross-legged, their hands resting naturally on their knees, their eyes closed in silent meditation.

In front of them, four people stood together.

They all wore black robes and each held a book in their hand. They chatted while watching the people below who seemed to be cultivating.

”This yearʼs Novice champion has entered.”

All four were middle-aged men, at least in appearance. The one who spoke was the relatively youngest among them.

Those who knew the Library Palace should know that these four were referred to as the ʼFour House Managersʼ. They were the assistants to the Dean of the Library Palace, responsible for the miscellaneous affairs of the Library Palace and the training of the librarians.

Of course, each major district also had its person in charge, who did not report to them.

The speaker was the Fourth Manager. The teleportation arrays inside and outside the Library Palace were his responsibility. On his terminal, a red dot representing Ye Zhongming appeared within the Library Palace.

”Guess which district he will go to first.” The Fourth Manager smiled as he spoke to the other three.

”Fourth Brother, arenʼt you bored?” The person standing slightly to the right of the middle shook his head, but his gaze continuously roamed over the three hundred librarians below. Whenever he saw someone not conforming to the rules, he would lightly flick his finger, and a finger wind would immediately hit that person to correct them.

What others did not know was that these people had maintained this posture for twenty-seven days.

”Second Brother, itʼs really too hard for these brothers to be under your guidance. You make them cultivate this ʼTranquil Breath Artʼ of all things. Naturally, itʼs immensely powerful once mastered, but the time consumed in this process is far too long.”

The Fourth Manager shook his head; he strongly disapproved of Second Brotherʼs approach. There were many cultivation methods available in the Library Palace. Even if the Tranquil Breath Art was one of the best methods, it was definitely the most arduous to practice.

Cultivating this method was divided into twelve stages. After mastering the introduction, one began cultivating the twelve stages. To outsiders, it appeared as though you were sitting quietly, but in reality, you maintained this posture while continuously circulating your energy to cleanse your body.

The first stage was relatively easy, lasting only ten days. But the second stage directly increased to seventy-seven days, the third stage required three hundred and ninety-eight days, and the fourth stage required two years and two days.

These people were just at the beginning of the fourth stage; they still had to sit here for over a year.

After that, there was the fifth stage requiring four years of sitting, the sixth stage requiring seven years, the eighth stage requiring twelve years, the ninth stage requiring sixteen years, the tenth stage requiring twenty-three years, and the eleventh and twelfth stages requiring thirty and thirty-five years respectively.

In other words, to fully master the Tranquil Breath Art, one needed to sit in meditation for a total of over one hundred and thirty years.

During this period, the cultivators were very, very vulnerable. Even a child holding a knife could kill them. Even if someone had already completed the eleventh stage and were considered a first-rate expert among the cosmic races in the universe, once they entered cultivation, they would have no defensive capabilities whatsoever.

Moreover, each sitting session was measured in years. Those without great perseverance simply could not persist. If they woke up midway, everything they had done before would be wasted.

For example, if the energy circulation was not maintained properly and a person woke up on the final day of the twelfth stage, then the over one hundred years spent before would be in vain.

The harsh nature of this cultivation method meant that even though people outside knew that once successfully cultivated, one could become a great expert among the cosmic races, very few actually practiced it.

”We are here undisturbed, without worries of survival, without enemies, with peace in our hearts. Isnʼt that perfectly suitable for cultivating this method?”

The Second Manager did not mind at all. His eyes continued to watch the people below, ready at any moment to correct any errors that might occur in their cultivation.

”Second Brother, not everyone has the great perseverance like you to complete this nearly impossible feat. Among these three hundred people... forgive my bluntness, if even ten of them can cultivate to the tenth stage, it would be due to the favor of the Invincible God.”

Judging by the Fourth Managerʼs words, this Second Manager was actually a great expert who had completed the cultivation of the Tranquil Breath Art!

”Even if only one person can succeed in the end, that is acceptable. What we librarians lack the least is time, right?”

The others fell silent, a trace of inexplicable sorrow flashing in their eyes.

”Alright!” The leader, the First Manager, clapped his hands lightly, actively lightening the atmosphere. ”Letʼs continue Fourth Brotherʼs topic. Guess which district this yearʼs Novice champion went to first? Iʼll guess first. I guess he went to the First Era District. Thatʼs the district most people choose first.”

The Third Manager, who had not spoken until now, smiled and said, ”I guess itʼs the History District. Many novices go there first to clarify some matters.”

”Manufacturing District.”

The Second Manager was concise.

The Fourth Manager was very surprised and asked, ”Second Brother, why would you guess that?”

The Second Manager retorted, ”You all pay too little attention to the outside world. If you look at this noviceʼs record on the Novice battlefield and his actions before coming here, you would think the same as I.”

”This one, before coming to the survivor fortress, was a top-tier craftsman in wheel technology.”