Longevity by Grinding Skills

"Is this how the Hidden Blade Pavilion taught you?"

Dusk seeped into the sky like ink. Fu Jin’s voice, laced with the chill of clashing iron, exploded by Yue Mountain’s ear.

"Talisman Master?!"

The hairs on the back of Yue Mountain’s neck stood on end, and the veins beneath his skin throbbed. As he spun around, his footing was so unsteady that his stomp cracked the green bricks into a spiderweb pattern. A startled cry, like the clang of a broken gong, pierced the dusk, its trailing note holding a tremor even he didn’t notice.

With a light tug of his palm, Fu Jin sent Yue Mountain’s hulking frame toppling like a log. He rolled across the ground like a gourd, slammed hard against the wall, and crashed right through it, tumbling out of the courtyard.

Covered in dust, Yue Mountain scrambled to his feet. Head down, he was about to leave when Xu Yunfan called out to him.

"Hold on."

Before Yue Mountain could react, his vision blurred for a moment, and Xu Yunfan was standing bolt upright in front of him.

Both shocked and furious, he said in a low voice, "What more do you want?"

Xu Yunfan said, "You’ve made a complete mess of this courtyard. You ripped out the Refined Iron Stakes I went to great trouble to have installed, and you smashed a huge hole in the wall. You think you can just leave without paying for the damages?"

Yue Mountain’s face alternated between ashen and purple. He wanted to lash out, but then he saw Fu Jin standing to the side with his arms crossed, an unfriendly expression on his face.

He pulled a hundred-tael silver note from his robes, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it at Xu Yunfan before lowering his head and quickly departing.

Watching Yue Mountain’s retreating figure, Xu Yunfan clicked his tongue. "That’s only the second time I’ve ever seen someone that huge."

Fu Jin said, "The Hidden Blade Pavilion has a skill called the Profound Turtle Mountain Carrying Skill. That kid has an exceptional gift for it, and he’s been soaked in medicinal baths since he was a child. It’s not surprising he’s so big. You’ll have the chance to see even taller ones in the future."

He reached out and patted Xu Yunfan on the shoulder, his expression complicated as he looked at the somewhat bewildered Xu Yunfan.

"It must have been a difficult journey to get here, wasn’t it?"

A thought struck Xu Yunfan. Seeing Fu Jin’s dust-covered appearance, he realized what had happened. ’He went to do a background check on me.’

He replied nonchalantly, "You’re too kind, Senior Brother. Though every pass is hard to cross, I’ve crossed them all. As the saying goes, a time will come to ride the long wind and part the waves; I’ll hoist my cloud-sail high and cross the sea. And now, haven’t I made it?"

"’A time will come to ride the long wind and part the waves.’ The more Fu Jin savored the line, the more brilliant he found it. He couldn’t help but slap his thigh. "What a great poem! It fits your name perfectly."

"Not at all. It’s the name I’ve had since the very beginning."

"Having spirit is a good thing. From now on, consider the Celestial Craft Cave your home. There’s no need to be formal. If you need anything, just let me know."

"By the way, Senior Brother."

"What Realm are you in now?"

"I’m half a step from the Blood Exchange Realm. I’m getting old. If I don’t break through within two years, my qi and blood will start to decline, and then there’ll be no hope."

"I have another question."

"Hm?"

"Back when I entered the Mechanical City, with your status, you shouldn’t have had to be the one to greet me, right?"

"Of course not. It just so happened to be my turn on duty that day, and I had nothing better to do, so I came to see which idiot was spending fifty taels of silver on the toll. That sliding platform was developed by the Mechanical Hall. It hasn’t been used once in years and was about to rust over.

I never expected you to make such a unique entrance, Junior Brother. You truly do what ordinary people can’t. I’m not your match in that regard."

"..."

Fu Jin told him not to worry about Yue Mountain, saying the man wasn’t very bright and was just being used as a pawn to test him. If they met again, Xu Yunfan should just hit back. As long as nobody died, everything could be smoothed over.

Xu Yunfan readily agreed.

The craftsmen from the Celestial Craft Department took less than half an Hour to restore the courtyard to its original state.

"That will be 49 taels and 8 maces." The Celestial Craft Department disciple’s Profound Iron abacus clattered in his palm. "As for the small stuff, let’s just call it a congratulatory gift for Senior Brother Xu’s promotion. Just add a bit for Lucky Money—an even fifty taels will do."

"That expensive?!"

Xu Yunfan blurted out.

The man from the Celestial Craft Department chuckled. "Senior Brother, don’t say it’s expensive. Honestly, hiring the Celestial Craft Department for this is like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut. We’re the ones who build mechanical citadels and indestructible fortresses. For a small job like this, if you weren’t a prospective True Inheritor, we wouldn’t have even shown up."

’Got it. They’re the civil engineers!’

What else could Xu Yunfan say? Wincing, he took out the silver to pay, even forcing a smile to thank them.

After seeing the men from the Celestial Craft Department out, Xu Yunfan was about to head back inside when he raised an eyebrow. Standing outside the red-lacquered courtyard gate was a young girl with a sword in her arms. She barely came up to his chest.

With her two hair buns and the stubborn tuft of hair on top of her head that would never lie flat, he recognized her as the girl from the neighboring courtyard in Cui Bo City who had accused him of disturbing the peace.

"So you’re the True Disciple designated by the Weapon Casting Hall."

The girl looked surprised, then frowned and clicked her tongue twice. Without a backward glance, she left, leaving Xu Yunfan utterly confused.

As Xu Yunfan watched the girl’s retreating figure, Fu Jin, who had supposedly left, reappeared by his side as if out of thin air.

"Fallen for her?"

Fu Jin stroked his chin, thoughtfully watching the girl’s back. "That’s Hong Siyang, the granddaughter of the current Sect Leader of the Celestial Craft Cave. She should be about twelve now. In another two years, she’ll be old enough to marry. I could mention it to Master and the Sect Leader. It would be a fine thing if we could make a match..."

"Senior Brother! She’s still a child!"

Xu Yunfan nearly jumped out of his skin, shaking his head repeatedly. "I appreciate the thought, Senior Brother, but I need to focus on my training right now. Matters between men and women can wait until I’ve achieved Great Mastery of Divine Skills."

"True. Your training should be the priority right now. Put aside thoughts of romance for now. Alright, I won’t disturb you any longer. Seize the time and practice."

Fu Jin waved his hand and was about to leave when Xu Yunfan called out to him again.

"Senior Brother, I want to learn Forged Soldiers from you."

Fu Jin froze for a moment, then frowned. "Your priority right now is your martial arts training. The matter of smithing and Forged Soldiers can wait."

Xu Yunfan said, "Senior Brother, my Cloak Hammer has reached the Perfection Realm, and I can wield the Heavy Hammer as I please. If I can learn Forged Soldiers, I’ll be able to master the subtle shifts in my strength. My power application will naturally rise to another level, which will be of immense benefit to my overall strength."

Hearing this, Fu Jin considered it for a moment. "I’ll have to discuss this with Master first. For now, just focus on your training."

After Fu Jin hurried away, the following days passed without much incident. Xu Yunfan’s identity was confirmed. Though he had seemingly appeared out of nowhere from Beiye City, he had come from the direction of The Eight-Hundred-Mile Desolate River Ice-Plains. Given the Celestial Craft Cave’s network, they were naturally able to learn about what happened at Ninggu Tower.

As a result, every time Fu Jin came over and saw Xu Yunfan, he would sigh and call him a child with a bitter fate, one that could rival those from Divine Weapon Ridge. This air of shared misery annoyed Xu Yunfan to no end.

It wasn’t until yesterday, when news arrived that Wuzhou had been locked down by the Great Zhou Imperial Court, that things quieted down. Zhan Yan was still in seclusion forging a weapon for him, so Fu Jin, as the acting Chief Steward, was pulled into a meeting, finally giving Xu Yunfan some peace and quiet.

One hundred thousand Profound Armor Tiger Braves were felling mountains and destroying temples in Wuzhou. The gates of fourteen Sects had all been smashed.

The news sent shockwaves through the Martial Arts World. It was said that even the Jiuyao Sect, the only top-tier Sect in Yanbei Dao, had personally sent representatives to the Jade Capital.