Longevity by Grinding Skills

Before long, a kestrel flew swiftly from a residence toward Cui Bo City.

In the courtyard of a residence near Cui Bo Tower, a purple-robed old man read the message delivered by the kestrel, a hint of hatred in his eyes. "My disciple, he will soon be joining you."

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At Cui Bo Tower by Cuibo Lake, Yan Yuwei presented her Celestial Craft Cave token and was promptly shown to a private room on the third floor.

Seeing Xu Yunfan’s surprise, Yan Yuwei explained, "You might not know this, Senior Brother Xu, but Cui Bo Tower is one of the Foreign Affairs Hall’s businesses. Inner Sect Disciples are welcome here anytime."

Xu Yunfan understood.

He sat down opposite Yan Yuwei. Once all the dishes were served, she expertly took a Fish Tail Saber and sliced off a piece of raw fish as thin as a cicada’s wing.

"Do you know what’s so special about this fish, Senior Brother Xu?"

With a flick of her wrist, the slice of fish landed precisely on the Ice Jade Disc in front of Xu Yunfan. "An hour after it leaves the water," she explained, "the flesh will curl up into a ring, completely losing its spiritual essence and vitality. Cuibo Lake stretches for dozens of miles, so this is the only place you can eat it fresh. The Foreign Affairs Hall even maintains a team of expert fishermen just to catch these Spirit Fish."

Xu Yunfan picked up a piece with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth. His eyes lit up.

"This is delicious."

Moreover, he could feel wisps of a cool energy spread from his stomach through his entire body, only to vanish without a trace an instant later. Eaten over a long period, it could heal a Martial Artist’s hidden injuries and even extend their life.

Unfortunately, it was useless to him; merely a pleasure for the palate.

Each time his Attribute Panel was enhanced, it would wash away any hidden injuries, purifying his flesh and blood and restoring his body to a perfect state.

Yan Yuwei relaxed a little at his reaction and asked, "So, Senior Brother Xu, was there a particular reason you invited me here today?"

She wasn’t a fool. Everyone in the Celestial Craft Cave knew Xu Yunfan was obsessed with his training; he wouldn’t waste even half a day. Treating someone to a meal like this...

He’d never even treated his own master to a meal, let alone her.

’It couldn’t be that he actually likes me, could it?’

Yan Yuwei’s heart pounded, and her mind couldn’t help but race. ’I’ve heard that prodigious geniuses like him often have strange tastes... Maybe I’m his type?’

’If that’s really it, should I say yes right away, or should I be a little more reserved?’

"You’re very perceptive, Junior Sister Yan."

Xu Yunfan put down his chopsticks. "To be honest," he said, "under my master’s guidance, the art of creating Forged Soldiers is now on the right track. However, my master says that to truly perfect it, I need to familiarize myself with the properties of all kinds of ores."

"That’s why I’d like to ask you to teach me the Melt Gold Hall’s Melting Gold and Forging Iron."

The Scripture Pavilion had records of the Melting Gold and Forging Iron art, but the core techniques—Absorbing Gold into Flesh and Blood, using it over years to identify the properties of ore veins, and ultimately cultivating the Golden Iron Body—were not included. Only the Hall Master of the Melt Gold Hall or a True Disciple was permitted to practice them.

Even the Inner Sect Disciples of the Melt Gold Hall didn’t practice it. Instead, they cultivated a different core art from the hall.

It’s not that it was forbidden, but without the right innate constitution, practicing it rashly could cause the body to mutate, potentially even leading to death.

The Celestial Craft Cave had had such accidents before, which was why the martial arts of the various halls were sealed away. Now, besides the Hall Masters themselves, anyone who wished to view them must first get the approval of the respective Hall Master.

Zhan Yan would never agree. In his eyes, Xu Yunfan possessed an extraordinary talent for forging, and he wouldn’t want him to waste it. Practicing the arts of another hall would be a complete waste of time, a distraction from his true calling.

"I see."

Yan Yuwei breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to speak, a groaning sound, like old wood straining under a heavy weight, came from the staircase, catching their attention.

The door to their private room was blasted open by a powerful surge of Qi Force. A purple-robed old man leaning on a snake-headed staff stepped onto the landing. The bronze rings on the end of his staff THUDDED dully against the floorboards as his gaze fell upon Xu Yunfan and Yan Yuwei.

But his attention was fixed almost entirely on Xu Yunfan.

The deep wrinkles etched into his face seemed to be embedded with iron filings, and dark spots mottled his skin. When he smiled, it sounded like the grating of a rusty hinge.

"Young Hero Xu, you’ve certainly been hard to find. I’ve nearly worn my old bones to dust looking for you."

This was no friendly visit.

Xu Yunfan raised an eyebrow. Hearing the veiled threats in the man’s words, he saw no reason to be polite. With an air of mock surprise, he said, "Well now, what would an old man be looking for me for? Shouldn’t you find a nice spot to live out your golden years? Be careful running all over the place. You wouldn’t want to drop dead on the road and make your children and grandchildren go to all the trouble of carrying your corpse home."

"Such a sharp tongue."

A look of bitter resentment and undisguised killing intent crossed the purple-robed old man’s face.

"Do you remember? Outside Dingbei City in Wuzhou... when you shattered my disciple’s spine? Did you ever think that one day, someone would come to avenge him?"

Xu Yunfan was about to reply when his nostrils flared slightly, and his expression turned to ice.

He rose slowly to his feet, his right hand closing around the handle of the Thunderfire Qilin Hammer that rested at his side. Beside him, Yan Yuwei’s heart seized. She shot a look at Xu Yunfan, then grabbed the long-handled Mechanical Saber leaning against the wall.

"I was wondering who it was. So it’s an old dog from the Incense and Candle Sect."

A look of dawning comprehension crossed Xu Yunfan’s face, followed by an icy flash in his eyes.

"That precious disciple of yours was toying with an infant, using an Eight-footed Serpent Spear. In hindsight, I killed him too quickly. It would have been far more satisfying to grind his bones to dust, bit by bit."

Beside him, Yan Yuwei groaned inwardly. Xu Yunfan’s words were just pouring salt on the wound.

’This purple-robed old man has a strange build—broad shoulders and a long torso. His enormous hands have a purplish-black sheen; he’s clearly a master who has already transformed his body in the Flesh Refining Realm. I’m only in the Third Level Martial Master Realm, not even at First Level Perfection. How am I supposed to fight someone an entire realm above me?’

’And besides...’

Yan Yuwei glanced behind the old man. A dense crowd of men in black had nearly filled the entire staircase.

’Is this guy a walking disaster? The first time he comes out, this happens.’

Yan Yuwei wanted to curse.

"I will return every word you just said to you, bit by bit."

The old man’s purple robes billowed as if in a gale, revealing the Nine-Section Steel Whip coiled at his waist. Each section of the whip was covered in vicious barbs, the tips of which glinted with a faint, blue light.

"Are you aware? The thirty-two cities of Wuzhou have all been slaughtered. The ground is soaked with blood and flesh, a sea of crimson. But you ran fast, didn’t you? All the way to Cangzhou, right into the Celestial Craft Cave. You’ve made me wait a very long time."

An irrepressible rage surged in Xu Yunfan’s chest. If he had never been to Wuzhou, it might have been different; he would have just heard the words, and they wouldn’t have meant much. After all, as a transmigrator, he wouldn’t have truly been able to empathize.

But he *had* been there. He had seen the people, heard their stories. And whenever he came across members of the Incense and Candle Sect that he was strong enough to beat, he exterminated them without a second thought.

In an instant, the steel whip shot forward with the old man’s hand. As it shrieked through the air, one of its barbs grazed the tip of Xu Yunfan’s nose as he leaned back. His expression was devoid of panic. The muscles of his waist and abdomen contracted sharply, snapping his body upright. An instant later, those same muscles rippled like a wave, and he shot from under the table like a diving fish.

The tip of the whip lashed a table leg, and wood splinters exploded outward like shrapnel, embedding themselves deep in a nearby pillar.

CRACK!

The old man’s purplish-black hand smashed through the window lattice, his fingers clawing for Xu Yunfan’s throat.

As his Adam’s apple bobbed, Xu Yunfan’s neck muscles suddenly bulged, clamping the old man’s thumb between them.

He wanted to test the limits of a Martial Master at Third Level Perfection, which was why he hadn’t immediately used his Thunderfire Qilin Hammer.

The instant they began their struggle, the Nine-Section Whip slithered up like a python and coiled around a ceiling beam, which groaned under the strain.

At that moment, Yan Yuwei retreated, knocking over a decorative screen. The long-handled saber in her hands became a blur, CLANGING as it instantly shattered the crude sabers of three of the black-clad men.

Blade fragments embedded themselves in her forearm, only to be squeezed out by her tensed muscles with the screech of metal on metal.