Da Xuan Martial Saint

Chapter 104 – 100: 2 Coins

“It’s said that the stela of the Demon-Slaying Office was inscribed with the blood of a Sixth Rank Great Demon. The one who penned it was the previous Bureau Head of the Demon-Slaying Office, and even more so, it contains a strand of the might of the second step of the Separating Fire Artistic Conception. Ordinary people would be shocked at a mere glance and cannot gaze upon it for long.”

The soft voice of Xiao He reached him from the side.

Chen Mu came back to his senses, slightly narrowing his focus.

The second step of the Separating Fire Artistic Conception.

No wonder it feels almost like being scorched.

But the difference between the second step and the first step of Artistic Conception is actually so huge. With his current first-level Artistic Conception, even if he were to combine the forces of wind and thunder, he couldn’t produce such strokes that, by mere observation, could shake and intimidate the heart.

Of course.

The blood of that Sixth Rank Great Demon must play a key part, after all, the blood of a Seventh Rank Jiao is an indispensable catalyst in the Tendon Changing Pill. The blood of a Great Demon of the Sixth Rank, even if slightly less potent, would not be considered ordinary, and holds great value in itself.

“The second step of the Separating Fire Artistic Conception, how profound is it?” Continue your adventure with m

Chen Mu turned to look at Xiao He.

Xiao He spoke softly, “I’m not sure either, but it’s said that the prowess of the second step of Artistic Conception is akin to the qualitative change when practicing the Body Tempering Method to the Five Viscera Realm, producing Inner Breath Yuan Gang. If someone in the Bone Tempering Realm could master the second step, they would then possess some of the power of the Five Viscera Realm.”

Listening to Xiao He’s description, Chen Mu inwardly felt that perhaps not even one iteration from the system panel would suffice to directly step into the second phase, because based on this, the gap between the first and second steps seemed even larger than what he previously understood.

Above the Bone Tempering Realm, the Five Viscera Realm involves the accumulation of Qi-Blood, and the internal cultivation of Yuan Gang is a qualitative change. It’s said to transform intangible Qi-Blood into a form of tangible Vigor, which has no attribute in itself, but can evolve along with Artistic Conception.

This is also the rumored reason why only upon reaching the Five Viscera Realm can one fully unleash the true potential of Artistic Conception.

With such a vast leap, to directly display power close to that of a Five Viscera Realm strongman propelling Artistic Conception with their own ‘Yuan Gang’ at the second step of Artistic Conception – hence its formidable nature. No wonder there are so very few in Yu City who have stepped into the second phase of Artistic Conception.

“Five Viscera and Six Viscera, Seven Marrows and Eight Bloods.”

Chen Mu once again looked towards the stela of the Demon-Slaying Office, murmuring softly to himself.

A martial artist entering the Five Viscera Realm brings not only a revolutionary increase in strength but also the regulation of the Five Viscera cycle, healing various hidden injuries gradually, solidifying Qi-Blood to prevent its dissipation. Even at the age of seventy or eighty, their strength does not decline, and they can usually live up to a hundred years or more.

There’s not much change after advancing into the Six Viscera Realm; one still refines and nurtures Yuan Gang, but if one can practice step by step to perfection, crossing that threshold into the seventh step of Body Refining – the Marrow Cleansing Realm, a new world unfolds.

In the heyday of the Da Xuan Dynasty, such beings were powerful enough to hold the office of an Inspector for a whole State!

And only at this level does one truly qualify to set their sights on the whole world.

Of course.

For him at the moment, even for Yu City as a whole, such existences seemed very distant.

As he was deep in thought.

The solemn silence of the Demon-Slaying Office was broken by a series of footsteps; a young man in an embroidered robe walked out, followed by several attendants.

Upon arriving outside the Yamen of the Demon-Slaying Office, he immediately noticed Xiao He and Chen Mu standing in front of the stela. He glanced briefly at Xiao He, and as he passed by, he said indifferently,

“Xu Hongyu has returned?”

“Miss is with the Metropolitan Commander…”

Xiao He seemed somewhat restrained, responding cautiously.

The person she least wanted to meet in the Demon-Slaying Office was this man in front of her—Xue Lin, the Deputy Governor of the Demon-Slaying Office.

“Oh.”

Xue Lin didn’t pause, simply passing by, casting another glance at Chen Mu before withdrawing his gaze and walking past without concern, disappearing at the end of the road.

Chen Mu watched Xue Lin walk away and turned to look at Xiao He, noticing her forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat. He slowly said, “Who is that person?”

“Xue Lin, the Deputy Governor of the Demon-Slaying Office.”

Xiao He, seeing Xue Lin’s figure had disappeared, let out a slight breath of relief and quietly replied.

So, it was him.

Chen Mu nodded slightly.

He had certainly heard of Xue Lin, the direct descendant of the Xue Family, the foremost among the young generation of the four major families of the Inner City. Already having advanced into the Bone Tempering Realm, he was quite renowned.

The most capable among the other families’ younger generation were only at the Tendon Changing Perfection.

Xu Hongyu was even farther behind, still some distance from Tendon Changing Perfection.

Moreover, the incident last time when Xiao He nearly got ambushed by someone sent by He Mingxuan, it seemed to involve this man too. But at the time, Xiao He did not speak of it in detail to him. Now, seeing her reaction, it seemed there was probably some conflict. Otherwise, with Xiao He’s character, she wouldn’t become so cautious merely upon seeing him.

However, since Xiao He wouldn’t say, Chen Mu didn’t inquire further. He lacked any great interest in Xue Lin; there weren’t any direct conflicts or connections between the Xue Family and him.

Titles like “the number one of the younger generation” were even less of interest to him to scramble over with someone else.

After a while,

Xu Hongyu finally appeared within the Demon-Slaying Office’s Yamen, making her way over to Chen Mu and Xiao He. Just as she was about to say something, she suddenly noticed Xiao He’s expression was somewhat strange and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Xiao He shook her head, “I just ran into Deputy Governor Xue.”

“Xue Lin…”

Xu Hongyu pondered for a moment.

This person was indeed formidable. Only a little older than her, he had already stepped into the Bone Tempering Realm. Although he hadn’t grasped the Artistic Conception yet, he was still among the best of the younger generation, currently unmatched by others.

If he could comprehend the Artistic Conception in the future, he would greatly distance himself from the others and leap to become one of the core figures of the Xue Family.

“Try to avoid conflict with this person as much as possible; yielding three points will suffice.”

Xu Hongyu didn’t dwell long on the matter of Xue Lin. She soon turned her head to look at Chen Mu. With a gentle flip of her jade hand, she took out a light-colored embroidered pouch from her person and passed it over to Chen Mu.

Chen Mu was slightly startled and reached out to receive the light-colored embroidered pouch with lotus patterns on it, which still faintly retained some warmth. Upon opening it, he found a pitch-black pill, the size of a baby’s fist, inside.

This object was all too familiar to Chen Mu.

Tendon Changing Pill.

And, with a slight sniff, detecting that familiar medicinal scent, he knew that it was the very Black Jade Tendon Changing Pill he had already completely used up; it was identical in every aspect.

“This is…”

Chen Mu looked towards Xu Hongyu in astonishment.

Xu Hongyu gave him a slight nod and said, “I said last year that I would give you a Tendon Changing Pill this year. Although you happened to get one from the Zheng Family by chance, having an extra one when breaking through Tendon Changing always increases your chances.”

Xiao He had regained her composure by now and looked at Chen Mu, blinking, “This pill was exchanged by the lady with the merit from this demon hunting mission; but for you, you’ll definitely be able to step into Tendon Changing, right?”

Her own advancement into Tendon Changing had been extremely difficult, and the first Tendon Changing Pill hadn’t been enough for her to make the breakthrough. Afterwards, she had struggled to accumulate Qi-Blood and strengthen her foundation. Last year, having obtained a second pill, she was finally able to break through.

The first pill was achieved through her own efforts, and the second one was given by Xu Hongyu. Without Xu Hongyu, she most likely wouldn’t have had the chance to get a second one.

Now, Chen Mu also had two pills in his possession.

Given Chen Mu’s physical constitution and his extraordinary talent, the difficulty of advancing to Tendon Changing would definitely be much lower than hers. In any case, having two Tendon Changing Pills should be more than enough to cross that threshold.

Chen Mu felt the slight warmth of the embroidered pouch in his hand. He wanted to say that he had actually already stepped into the Tendon Changing Realm, but ultimately he didn’t speak up.

After all, the effects and medicinal power of the Tendon Changing Pill were far superior to ordinary medicines and would help him move faster from Tendon Changing Major Achievement to Tendon Changing Perfection, which he indeed needed at the moment.

Although he had been working for Xu Hongyu all this time, she had genuinely put a lot of effort into cultivating him.

This expectation… would not go unrequited…

Chen Mu accepted the second Black Jade Tendon Changing Pill.

“Alright, I still need to make a trip to the City Defense Division to resign from the position of Chief Constable, as well as your position at Wutong Grove District Prefecture Chief; I’ll resign on your behalf as well. After you go back and pack, you will move to the Inner City to quietly cultivate for the next few months, striving to step into the Tendon Changing Realm as soon as possible.”

Xu Hongyu nodded to Chen Mu, then immediately turned to Xiao He and instructed, “Xiao He, take him to the Yu Family residence to find a suitable courtyard. It’d be best to move there within the next day or two.”

Having said that,

without waiting for a response from Xiao He, she walked straight ahead and swiftly disappeared among the towering bluestone walls.

“Let’s go.”

Xiao He watched as Xu Hongyu left, then turned her head towards Chen Mu and whispered, “I’ll take you to find a suitable courtyard first. It’s already a bit late today, so you’ll stay for one day, and then go back tomorrow to pack your things.”

“…Alright.”

Chen Mu’s gaze still lingered in the direction Xu Hongyu had left. He now turned his attention to Xiao He, nodded slightly to her, and followed her away from the Demon-Slaying Office, heading toward the Yu Family’s residence.

…

The Yu Family’s residence was very large.

Chen Mu had only come here before by following the perimeter to reach the Martial Arts Institute’s location, but in fact, the area the Yu Family occupied, although not as large as the Xue Family’s, still encompassed a large expanse of houses and courtyards, any of which could be considered the size of a small town on its own.

This time, as they walked along, Xiao He led the way while introducing the structure of the Yu Family’s residence to Chen Mu. She had never gone into detail with Chen Mu before, but since he was to stay in the Yu Family residence for a while, things were naturally different.

“…That area to the west is where the older generation of the Yu Family rest and recuperate, basically all from the first generation. They were all pillars of the Yu Family in their youth, but now with advanced age, their Qi-Blood has declined. They mostly spend their days playing chess and relaxing. If you have martial arts queries, you can consult with them.

Occasionally, they also visit the Martial Arts Institute to give guidance to the young.”

Xiao He pointed to a section of streets near the western part of the Yu Family’s premises and said.

The Yu Family now actually already had a fifth generation, but the eldest of the fifth generation wasn’t even over ten years old yet, so generally, they didn’t mention the fifth generation, still focusing on the previous four generations as the main.

This situation was somewhat different from what Chen Mu had imagined. He thought that the first generation of the Yu Family would all be the elders, including that almost senile figure from the Five Viscera Realm, but in reality, aside from that one, the living first-generation members of the Yu Family had mostly declined in Qi-Blood and no longer concerned themselves with worldly affairs.

Moreover, this group’s status wasn’t the same; some were direct ancestors from the Yu Family’s current direct lineage, while others were from side branches that had persisted from that time, with not much of their bloodline remaining.

“The east side is where the Yu Family’s main court is located. The current higher-ups of the clan, including the main lineage and the lineage of the family head, all live there. Try to avoid going to the east side if it’s not necessary; it’s actually the smallest area.”

Xiao He continued her introduction as she led the way forward.