Chapter 414 - 5: Joyful Ascension Scroll
This way, the youngsters learn many Martial Arts (武道) concepts in advance before entering the Martial Arts Hall (武堂).
Even while cultivating in the Martial Arts Hall, they understand faster than those who have never been exposed to Martial Arts.
Although Liang (大梁) stipulates that one can only enter the Martial Arts Hall at fifteen, many youths already know some fist techniques before then. After entering, they don’t need much instruction to start cultivating Qi (练气功法).
In Jiangnan Dao (江南道), they cultivate the Warm Sun Fist (暖阳拳), while the East Sea Path (东海道) Martial Arts Hall teaches multiple cultivation techniques.
Each student can choose a fist or palm technique based on their prior exposure to Martial Arts at the Martial Arts Palace (武道宫) that they excel at.
Almost all who enter the Martial Arts Hall can cultivate Essence Qi (精气).
From the words of Ye Feng (叶风) and others, they are very familiar with the Martial Arts Palace. It seems every Path should have one.
Standing in front of the Martial Arts Palace, Lin Chen (林晨) recalled an article he read online in his previous life: Xiaoming takes six minutes to reach the youth palace from home, while it took me twenty years to enter a youth palace for the first time.
When he saw this sentence online, he instinctively opened the search bar: What is a youth palace like?
He was already twenty-six years old that year.
Everyone says Jiangnan Dao is poor, and its Martial Arts are at the bottom. Before, Lin Chen didn’t have an in-depth concept of this, especially when he could leave his name on the Martial Arts Mountain and compete for rankings with talents from all over Liang. The notion of poverty became somewhat blurred.
He only thought Jiangnan Dao was worse than other Paths, but it couldn’t be much worse.
Lord Su (苏大人), Lord Bo (卜大人), and the teachers cried poverty in front of Lord Kong (孔大人), just to gain more resources for Jiangnan Dao.
But now it seems, Jiangnan Dao is truly poor.
The mainstream Wave Breaking Palm (排浪掌) from the East Sea Dao Martial Arts Hall is more powerful than the Warm Sun Fist. For those who have cultivated Essence Qi, the Wave Breaking Palm is significantly stronger than the Warm Sun Fist.
Is Jiangnan Dao lacking other advanced Qi Cultivation Techniques?
No!
It’s simply because the cultivation cost of the Warm Sun Fist is the lowest!
Jiangnan Dao Martial Arts Hall students pursue merely cultivating Essence Qi, not stronger Essence Qi.
...
...
Martial Arts Palace, Area Two.
Only open to Viscera-Refining Martial Artists (练脏武者).
"There’s no need to go to the training site, the junior brothers don’t appreciate it much, and the Martial Academy (武院) has them as well."
Qu Feng (曲峰) led Lin Chen and the others to a marketplace-like area, bustling with activity.
"The Martial Arts Palace has set up a market for us, Viscera-Refining Martial Artists, where you can sell good items, including some pills and herbs. Prices are much cheaper than outside, but if you’re unsure, don’t buy hastily. The rule here is no regrets after the transaction."
"Senior Brother Qu (曲师兄), we understand the rules - at the Martial Arts Palace, transactions rely entirely on one’s judgment. If you buy a fake due to misjudgment, you can only blame your own lack of judgment."
Ye Feng chuckled, already quite eager.
"Besides not being able to return or exchange items, if multiple people fancy the same item, it’s first come, first served. You must wait for the person in front to complete their transaction with the vendor before stepping forward."
Shen Ze (沈泽) added this, mainly for Lin Chen.
All of them understood the rules of the Martial Arts Palace. Lin Chen just joined and naturally didn’t know. Senior Brother Qu’s introduction was also meant for Lin Chen, but Ye Feng hadn’t caught on yet.
Listening to these rules, Lin Chen inexplicably thought of the Antique Street (古玩街) from his past life, and the rules were quite alike.
However, he was curious about what items could attract them, given their family backgrounds and being in the Refining Viscera Realm?
"Senior Brother Lin (林师兄), ordinary items naturally don’t catch our eye, but this kind of market occasionally has unique items. Even the seller doesn’t know their use, so they might sell them at low or high prices. It depends on both parties’ judgment."
Peng Jingqi (彭静琪) noticed Lin Chen’s confusion and explained.
Lin Chen nodded, understanding that Ye Feng and the others had a good family background and broad knowledge, enabling them to assess the value of peculiar items from their appearance or smell better than the sellers.
Sellers with mysterious items they can’t discern wouldn’t go to shops for fear of being cheated and would instead place them in this market at a high price, hoping for a naive buyer.
Ye Feng and his peers may not necessarily expect to find rare items in the market; they likely enjoy the thrill of scoring a deal more.
"Junior Brother Lin (林师弟), wear this head covering. If someone recognizes you, they might offer sky-high prices."
Qu Feng casually picked up several bamboo hats with veils at the market entrance. Lin Chen took one, putting it on to cover his face completely.
Once everyone had donned their veils, they headed straight into the market.
"Everyone split up to browse. If you find something but aren’t sure, we can discuss it."
"Alright!"
The marketplace wasn’t a single road but a square. Many vendors set up stalls with coarse cloth, leaving enough space for three to five people to pass between stalls.
Lin Chen separated from Ye Feng and the others, wandering into one of the areas. His eyes swept quickly over the dazzling array of goods on display behind his veil.
Herbs, pills, broken weapons, various yellowed beast-skin scrolls, and even some incomplete secret manuals...
Yet Lin Chen did not touch them. He knew he had no advantage in this area, unable to discern authenticity. Glancing at the others, he saw Ye Feng holding a uniquely styled hourglass, conversing with a vendor.
Did he find something good so quickly?
Though curious about what caught Ye Feng’s eye, Lin Chen didn’t approach him but continued browsing on his own.
When he reached the sixth stall, he stopped.
The vendor was a man in his thirties, with few items on display. Compared to other stalls filled with goods, his seemed quite scarce.
One person couldn’t possibly have that many unusual items for sale.
Lin Chen knew this well. Those stalls full of various goods were likely run by professional vendors.
Obtaining a valuable item from a professional vendor was nearly impossible. These professional vendors usually play off the Martial Artists’ desire to score a deal, persuading them to buy worthless items at a high price.
This stall with only a few items seemed more like someone genuinely selling their possessions.
Of course, there’s also the possibility that this vendor deliberately set it up this way to lower buyers’ defenses.
"Vendor, what is this?"
Along the way, Lin Chen learned the rules of buyer-seller interactions. He crouched down. By crouching in front of a stall, others wouldn’t approach.
"If I knew what it was, I wouldn’t have put it out for sale."
Lin Chen: ...
That makes sense.
"Can I take a closer look?"
"Sure, but you can only look at the first page, no further. I can tell you that there are words on every page of this book."
Lin Chen nodded, picking up the yellowed book from the stall.
What attracted him to this book was the words on the cover.
"Joyful Ascension Scroll (快活升天贴)"
This name easily stirs the imagination!
But what intrigued Lin Chen wasn’t the words themselves or their content, but the handwriting.
From the first glance at those five characters, he was captivated.
Just one look gave him a slight feeling of joy.
He opened to the first page.
{"In the bitter world, enjoy life while you can..."}
The first page contained fifteen characters titled "Pleasure Chapter (行乐篇)."
While the name was suggestive, the content was legitimate.
{"Admire flowers to dissolve anger, listening to the rain eases worries."}
{"Drink deeply from the Three Mountains dew, sleep on a Five Lakes boat."}
{"Awaken with cloud-parting hands, with a clear heart bask in freedom."}
In his former life, this would be dismissed as a bait-and-switch, leaving people saying, "I’ve gotten ready for something profound, and you give me this?"
Lin Chen mused inwardly but didn’t read further, turning directly to the vendor, asking, "How much?"
"One thousand taels!"
Lin Chen: ...
PS: It’s mid-month, may I ask for a monthly vote?