Martial Saint with Passives

Upon running into him, the three acted as if they didn’t see him and headed straight outside.

Jiang Che couldn’t be bothered to say anything either. He just pushed open his door and went inside.

Shu Yaxin glanced at Jiang Che’s closed door, her lips curling into a sneer.

"Hmph, who does he think he is? He just got lucky before and started acting like a big shot! Senior Brother Mu took the initiative to speak to him, and he actually dared to put on airs and disrespect him. He doesn’t understand the first thing about how the world works. He totally deserves to end up like this; he has no one to blame but himself!"

Yan Hanpeng immediately nodded in agreement, his voice filled with an obvious attempt to curry favor.

"Junior Sister Shu is absolutely right! People like him never know their own limits. A little luck goes straight to their head. He’s been knocked down a peg now, hasn’t he? It’s so satisfying to see!"

Although Mu Jun didn’t speak, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly as he listened to the two of them belittle Jiang Che. He was clearly enjoying it.

Though Jiang Che had closed the door, his hearing was excellent, and he heard every word of their conversation.

His expression remained calm. He was already used to this sort of thing.

The world could be a cold place. It was just how things were.

A few more faint sneers drifted in from outside before slowly fading away.

He had just sat down to meditate when there was another knock on the door.

When he opened the door, he was surprised to see Yun Weiwei.

She looked at Jiang Che, her tone consoling. "I heard what happened. Don’t take it to heart. For disciples like us, without any backing, these kinds of ups and downs are normal. You’ll get another chance."

"Thanks," Jiang Che nodded.

Yun Weiwei paused before adding, "Your practical combat skills are so strong. Have you considered joining my squad? I recently joined an exploration team that ventures into Secret Realms outside the Sect to train. The team is full of veterans who, like us, don’t have any backing but are quite skilled. We’ve worked together several times, and the gains have been decent. With your strength, they’d definitely welcome you."

After a moment’s thought, Jiang Che shook his head and declined. "Thank you for the kind offer, but I’m used to working alone."

’Not to mention the threat from the Vice Sect Leader waiting for me outside.’

’Exploring might yield opportunities, but the risks were just as great!’

’Besides, I have too many secrets. Teaming up with others is ultimately inconvenient.’

Seeing his refusal, Yun Weiwei didn’t press him. "Alright. If you change your mind, you can find me anytime." With that, she took her leave.

A few days later, Jiang Che received another gift delivered from the Yin Family, which included a letter.

The letter made no mention of the Mining Area. It was filled with warm regards, assuring him that everything at Yin’s Cloth Shop was fine. They urged him to focus on his Cultivation and promised that the Yin Family would do everything in their power to help if he ever needed it.

A wave of warmth spread through Jiang Che’s heart as he finished the letter.

’This was the Yin Family’s way of showing their support now that I’ve lost influence. They still regarded me as an important Honored Guest Elder.’

’Such support was truly precious.’

Additionally, his First Senior Brother, Xiao Mingqian, also found the time to visit him once.

He encouraged him not to dwell on temporary gains or losses, reminding him that the path of Cultivation was long and that personal strength was the only true foundation.

Cheng Yuzhi also continued to visit as usual, often helping with odd jobs and sharing the latest Sect gossip.

The man seemed to be thriving more and more these days.

Though his Cultivation Talent was mediocre and he was still an Outer Disciple,

he was sociable and well-informed, skillfully managing his network of connections. That was a skill in its own right.

After seeing Cheng Yuzhi out, Jiang Che closed the door, his gaze turning tranquil once more.

’The chaos of the outside world was just that—outside.’

He clenched his fist, feeling the Qi Blood within him growing stronger by the day.

’Only my own strength is the true foundation to stand upon!’

...

「Four months passed in the blink of an eye.」

For those four months, Jiang Che spent nearly every waking moment in a B-level Cultivation Room.

He bought numerous Qi Blood Realm Martial Arts from the Scripture Pavilion and acquired a large supply of Withered Soul Grass from Ye Lianzhen.

He then continuously consumed Snow Crystal Milk, along with various Top Grade Elixir Pills and Top Grade Exotic Beast Meat.

He devoured and refined these Cultivation Resources—things that ordinary disciples rarely ever saw—as if they were mere food and water, holding nothing back.

Then, he would master one Qi Blood Realm Martial Art after another, only to dissipate them.

The results of this almost extravagantly arduous Cultivation were remarkable.

His internal Qi Blood and Strength accumulated and condensed at a startling rate. He soon broke through to the Mid-stage of the Bone Forging Realm, and was even on the verge of reaching the Late-stage Bone Forging Realm!

Simultaneously, he continuously "fed" newly activated, miscellaneous Talents into his four Core Talents.

With the integration of so many Talents, the Passive Attributes bonus from his [True: Infinite Battle Armor] increased by roughly a quarter.

To his great surprise,

after some testing, he discovered that the incredibly powerful Active Skill, "Tenfold Strike," could now be used twice in succession!

This was partly thanks to the significant increase in his total Strength.

On the other hand, the Talent itself was constantly "upgrading," which reduced its Strength consumption.

Moreover,

because his base power was on a completely different level now,

the true power he could now unleash with "Tenfold Strike" was far more terrifying than it had been in the Black Stone Mining Area!

Furthermore, by integrating a large number of basic Talents related to Body Techniques and speed,

his [Shadowless Escape Stream] finally underwent a qualitative leap, evolving into [True: Shadowless Escape Stream]!

In addition to the massive boost to his passive speed and Concealment Ability,

it had also awakened a powerful Active Skill:

[Active Skill: Shadow Escape. Upon activation, allows the user to forcibly vanish for a period of time. Movement will not break the invisibility. However, actively attacking an enemy will immediately break the concealed state. This Skill can be activated even during the day or in combat. Cultivators at or above the Seventh Layer of the True Master Realm may be able to see through the concealment. Can only be activated once per day.]

Jiang Che’s heart jolted when he saw the Skill’s description.