Longevity by Grinding Skills

The outermost layer of his skin completed twelve transformations through repeated tearing. His new skin was covered in diamond-shaped protrusions, barely visible to the naked eye. Each diamond-shaped unit acted like a miniature shock-absorbing structure, capable of dispersing impact force across his three hundred and sixty bones. Between the bulging, diamond-patterned muscles, this new outer layer was even harder than Refined Iron.

It could withstand weapons of the Sharp Blade Level!

At that moment, the sound of a rushing river echoed from deep within his gut. As his Spleen and Stomach digested the tiger meat from that morning, the sound rumbled like thunder. His digestive abilities had now far surpassed human limits.

Xu Yunfan was certain he could now easily eat a cow in a single day, or an elephant in three.

His body originally required vast amounts of Heavenly and Earthly Treasures and Blood Qi Elixir Pills just to undergo any kind of change. But now, with the aid of the Attribute Panel, it had transformed in an instant.

After a long while, the diamond-shaped protrusions on his skin receded, and the armor-like structure of his rib cage was concealed by muscle.

Xu Yunfan shifted his feet and saw that the bluestone tiles where he had been standing had silently sunk three inches. The nearly four-hundred-pound Thunderfire Qilin Hammer in his hand felt as light as a rice stalk. With a gentle swing, the air in the courtyard erupted in a series of thunderous booms, rumbling without end.

His momentum was like Thunder Fire, his power like a Mountain Collapse.

Among all Third Level Martial Masters, he was number one!

’Third Level Perfection... this is the first step of Transcendence...’

「Two days later.」

Fresh from the Thunder Fire Pool, Xu Yunfan had cleaned himself up and immediately buried himself in the Scripture Pavilion. He now stared at an ancient text made of yellowed rhinoceros hide paper in his hands.

The Celestial Craft Cave had a long and storied history, and its Scripture Pavilion housed a wealth of eye-opening knowledge. This included records concerning the Perfection of the "three refinements"—sinew, bone, and skin.

This ancient text dated back two thousand years, to an era when Primordial Spirits were on the verge of scattering and the Heaven and Earth Secret Power had yet to fully fade. It was one of the dozen oldest books in the Celestial Craft Cave’s Scripture Pavilion.

’Those who break through the three barriers of sinew, bone, and skin are like a hidden dragon emerging from the abyss, a Fish Leaping the Dragon Gate. No longer confined to some small corner of the world, they command respect wherever they go.’

’In the 370th year of the Circulation Calendar, Ancestral Master Yan Chixiao of the Sword Pavilion used the *Taiyi Light-Splitting Sword Body* to reach the Jade Marrow Realm. His entire skeleton became so translucent that the paths of his meridians were visible, and when he held a sword, his Sword Qi would spontaneously generate a three-inch azure glow.’

’The Daqian Martial Saint, Huo Tiandu, achieved the Golden Body Realm with his *Eight Desolates Prison-Suppressing Body*. Faint Sanskrit characters became visible within the texture of his muscles, and under the scorching sun, his body shone like a gilded Buddha. He could withstand a hundred shots from a Bed Crossbow without breaking his skin.’

’As for Ouyang Ye, the third Mountain Lord of Divine Weapon Ridge, he merged the *Hundred Forging Technique* with the *Melt Gold Hand* to create the ’Iron Bone’ technique. When he stood still, his heartbeat sounded like a war drum, and his very breath could melt metal. He forged the once-unrivaled Divine Weapon, the Great Deso...’

Xu Yunfan’s brows rose in surprise when he saw the ancient text mentioned Divine Weapon Ridge. But as he turned the page, his hand trembled.

The following pages had been torn out by someone.

"Goddammit..."

Xu Yunfan couldn’t help but curse under his breath. The book described the magnificent states one could achieve after breaking the three barriers, but it cut off right in the middle, leaving him hanging and thoroughly annoyed.

After returning the book to its shelf, he left the Scripture Pavilion. Now that he was at Third Level Perfection, he naturally began his step-by-step study of the *Pure Yang Qi Skill*, the manual Daoist Bi Sheng of the Taoist Sect had given him.

He had compared it to the Celestial Craft Cave’s own *Outer Three Harmonies Thousand Mechanisms and Hundred Refinements*. In every aspect—from unifying the three refinements of sinew, bone, and skin to combining them into a Mixed Whole Force to lay a foundation for the Flesh Refining Realm—the *Pure Yang Qi Skill* was leagues ahead.

’As expected of a top Sect from the Jade Capital Dao,’ he thought. ’Even a technique they just hand out is more profound than anything from the Celestial Craft Cave. It’s an especially perfect fit for the refinement process after achieving Perfection in sinew, bone, and skin.’

-----------------

「Jian Nan Dao, Yu Huan State. Qingwei Mountain Daoist Sect, Dragon and Tiger Hall.」

The Dragon Saliva Fragrance in the Copper Furnace crackled as it burned. Daoist Bi Sheng held a teacup between two fingers, its surface reflecting a single, withered half-leaf that had drifted in from outside the hall.

"Absolutely impossible!"

The rumbling in the old Daoist’s throat sounded like Tiger Bone Wine sloshing inside a gourd.

"A Martial Master who has reached Third Level Perfection in sinew, bone, and skin? That requires a mountain of Gold Foil Jade Marrow to build up. That kid has no True Blood, and his innate physique is cruder than the Shi Gandang statue at Laojun Temple."

Daoist Bi Sheng waved his sleeve, a confident, all-knowing smile on his face as he looked at Li Haomiao.

"You think a Martial Master at Third Level Perfection is someone you can just bump into on the street? No matter how talented that kid might seem, he has no True Blood, a poor physique, and low aptitude. He’d be lucky to even become a First-Level Martial Artist in this lifetime."

Li Haomiao couldn’t help but protest, "Master, I saw him practice his Martial Arts with my own eyes! He grasped the basics in a day and reached Minor Achievement in three! It was a great loss for our Taoist Sect that you didn’t accept him as a disciple!"

"Do you take me for a blind old fool?" Bi Sheng retorted. "My judgment is flawless!"

Bi Sheng’s tone softened slightly. "Even if our Taoist Sect is fabulously wealthy, with resources beyond measure, they are not to be wasted. If everyone in the Sect just accepted disciples as casually as you think I should—if I went down into the mortal world and took on tens of thousands of them—how could the Sect possibly support them all?"

Seeing that Li Haomiao still wanted to speak, Bi Sheng flicked his sleeve.

"Enough. Say no more. In all my years, I have never misjudged a person. Even if he got lucky back on the Eight-Hundred-Mile Desolate River Ice-Plains, activated his True Blood, and saw a rapid surge in his Martial Arts, he wouldn’t have been able to sustain it. It would have been completely consumed by his training—nothing more than a flash in the pan."

"There are countless people who practice Martial Arts in this world. Our Taoist Sect gathers the most exceptional young talents from all over Jian Nan Dao, yet even so, we only have twenty or thirty True Disciples who have reached First Level Perfection. As for Second or Third Level Perfection, there are even fewer—only three or four in this entire generation. Someone like that Xu..."

Li Haomiao supplied, "Xu Yunfan."

"...As for someone like that Xu Yunfan, most of the Sect’s disciples will spend their entire lives languishing in the Martial Master Realm."

He frowned. "You bring this up so often I’m sick of hearing it. Do not mention this matter again."

Li Haomiao opened his mouth as if to speak, but then just sighed. He bowed and turned to leave the hall.

Watching Li Haomiao’s retreating figure, a smirk appeared on Bi Sheng’s face.

The version of the *Pure Yang Qi Skill* he had given the boy was indeed better than the one he’d given Li Haomiao. However, without reaching First Level Perfection, it was impossible to cultivate successfully.

’And with that boy’s aptitude, reaching that level in this lifetime is next to impossible.’

’Trying to leech off my Taoist Sect.’

’Dream on!’

-----------------

’You have diligently studied the Pure Yang Qi Skill. As your Blood Qi surges, several wisps of Pure Yang Qi condense from it.’

Xu Yunfan wasn’t surprised to see the message floating in his vision. He had been poring over the *Pure Yang Qi Skill* for a long time and now knew its contents like the back of his hand.

Now that he was at Third Level Perfection, after just a little practice, the grayed-out text *Pure Yang Qi Skill (Uninitiated)* appeared in the Skill Bar on his Attribute Panel.

As soon as it appeared on the Attribute Panel, all the intricacies and secrets of the Martial Art naturally flooded his mind, removing all obstacles from his path of Cultivation.

Spring and summer had passed. The leaves on the trees throughout Celestial Craft City were already turning yellow, ready to be carried away by the first gust of autumn wind.

"Xu... Senior Brother Xu."

In front of the Scripture Pavilion, Yan Yuwei watched awkwardly as Xu Yunfan emerged and walked toward her. She greeted him, her voice strained.

Pulled from his thoughts on how to practice the *Pure Yang Qi Skill*, Xu Yunfan looked up. The first thing he saw was an exceptionally delicate and charming young woman with a pitiful, heart-rending expression.