Imperial Cultivation

The moonlight was like water.

The Tingtao Courtyard was brightly lit, as if it were daytime.

Under a plum tree on the west side of the courtyard, the sword light flickered.

After a dozen flashes, the long sword returned to Chu Zhiyuan's scabbard, having completed the Great Avalanche Swordplay.

The Yongquan acupoints on the soles of his feet suddenly acted like a whale swallowing, and the vital energy surged up to fill his dantian.

Then, he assumed a strange posture under the tree: legs slightly bent, left hand stroking, right hand pressing, as if embracing something.

It was the Dragon Subduing Stance.

Using the Dragon Subduing Stance to circulate the Dragon Transformation Art doubled the cultivation effect.

A quarter of an hour later, after his meridians had consumed eighty or ninety percent of the energy in his dantian, he once again circulated the Earth Origin Art, and the Yongquan acupoints on the soles of his feet absorbed vital energy from the earth like a whale, filling his dantian again.

Then, he continued to hold the Dragon Subduing Stance and circulate the Dragon Transformation Art.

After an hour, he felt tired.

So he circulated the Heaven Origin Art.

Strands of cool air descended from the sky, falling into the Baihui acupoint, and his brain felt as if it were immersed in an ice spring, instantly refreshing his spirit, dispelling all drowsiness, as if waking up from a sound sleep.

With a clear mind and refreshed spirit, he continued to hold the Dragon Subduing Stance and circulate the Dragon Transformation Art.

Great Avalanche Swordplay =\u003e Earth Origin Art =\u003e Dragon Transformation Art =\u003e Earth Origin Art =\u003e Great Avalanche Swordplay =\u003e Heaven Origin Art.

Again and again, in cycles.

Before he knew it, the dawn was breaking.

He had practiced all night, but he was full of energy and not at all tired.

This night of uninterrupted hard practice was better than ten days of hard practice at ordinary times.

The body has the ability to heal itself and restore balance, such as recovery after injury, or the rebound of weight loss.

Most of the time it's a good thing, but everything has its advantages and disadvantages, and sometimes it's not a good thing.

For martial arts practitioners, the ability to heal and restore balance allows them to recover from injuries, but at the same time, it is also the biggest obstacle to cultivation.

It makes the body like a spring or rubber band, preventing external forces from changing it.

Normal cultivation requires rest; half a day of practice requires half a day of rest.

During this half-day of rest, the body's self-healing and recovery abilities will eliminate most of the cultivation results, leaving only one or two out of ten.

But he practiced continuously for a whole night, pushing forward in one go, suppressing the rebound of self-healing and restoring balance, thereby retaining more of the cultivation results.

To destroy and then establish is to use the body's self-healing and recovery abilities to strengthen the body in the process, which is a kind of deception, a shortcut.

Therefore, his continuous practice for one night was better than ten days of practice at ordinary times.

He felt that according to this progress, it would only take a month to complete the first level of the Dragon Transformation Art, and then he could start practicing the Qi Cleansing Art and the Dragon Binding Cord.

The Qi Cleansing Art and the Dragon Binding Cord are complex but easy to master, and pose no difficulty for him. Eventually, he will master the Jade Lock Golden Gate Art, break through the three barriers in one breath, and enter the Innate Realm.

— —

After finishing it, he handed it directly to Zou Fang.

Zou Fang gently rubbed her palms together, instantly turning it into powder, which sprinkled into the soil in the cracks of the blue bricks.

Chu Zhiyuan arrived at the gate of the Prince's mansion.

At this time, the dawn was just beginning, the lanterns were still lit, the streets were quiet, and the noise faintly drifted from afar.

Yujing is a city that never sleeps, bustling and lively both day and night.

Guo Chi led eight Innate experts, and Feng Xi also quietly followed them, protecting Chu Zhiyuan as they walked forward.

Chu Zhiyuan smiled at Feng Xi and said, "No wonder you have such confidence. This Chief Jiang is actually a direct disciple of the Baiyun Sword Palace's Palace Master."

Feng Xi said, "Chief Jiang is a personal disciple of Grandmaster Ye Meng, and is destined to become a Grandmaster as well."

"Alas... a Grandmaster's disciple, speaking of which, I am also considered a Grandmaster's disciple," Chu Zhiyuan said.

Feng Xi smiled and said, "Grandmaster Ye only has this one personal disciple, who is the future Palace Master of the Baiyun Sword Palace, and can now be called the Young Palace Master."

Chu Zhiyuan nodded.

Chu Qingfeng is responsible for teaching them, these princes, but his relationship with them is different from that of a master in a martial arts sect.

The relationship between a master in a martial arts sect is closer than that of father and son, while the relationship between Chu Qingfeng and these princes is not so intimate.

"Your Highness, this servant will go and urge them again today."

"No hurry," Chu Zhiyuan shook his head: "This is deliberately avoiding suspicion. Moreover, too many times will only make people laugh and be looked down upon."

Prince Qing's mansion has always been deserted, with no one visiting, because the situation is unclear.

After all, after being sealed for thirty years, it's like a criminal just released from prison. Everyone will be wary, and rash contact may cause trouble, so they will avoid it if they can.

Feng Xi's visit must have been known to Chief Jiang, and saying that he needed to submit a greeting card in advance was both a rule and an excuse not to meet.

Prince Qing's mansion is a royal prince's mansion, and under normal circumstances, it can make exceptions and jump the queue. This is the privilege of the royal family.

If it were an ordinary official, even if he didn't want to meet, he would have to. This Chief Jiang was full of confidence and wouldn't meet if he didn't want to.

If Feng Xi is sent again, it would be like pestering him, and even if he could barely see Chief Jiang, he would lose the face of Prince Qing's mansion.

Face is sometimes not that important, but sometimes it is very important, especially for a royal mansion, it is dignity, status, and reputation.

If the reputation stinks, it will be completely isolated, making the environment even more difficult than it is now.

— —

In the early morning light, only two people were standing motionless in the Ziyang Stance on the training field.

One was burly and strong, the other was slender and tall.

As the sun rose and the purple energy came from the east, it was the best time to practice the Small Ziyang Art.

Chu Zhiyuan came to the two of them, cupped his fists, and smiled, "Ninth Brother, Tenth Brother, you're up early."

The two opened their eyes, cupped their fists, and called out, "Fourth Brother."

Chu Zhiyuan could hear that this "Fourth Brother" was sincere and no longer so reluctant.

This is the way of the world, where the strong are respected.

He smiled and said, "Ninth Brother, Tenth Brother, do you know the Chief Jiang of the Town Martial Division?"

"Chief Jiang?" Chu Zhiting nodded: "Fourth Brother hasn't met this Chief Jiang, right?"

"I haven't had the pleasure of meeting him."

"This Chief Jiang is Grandmaster Ye Meng's only personal disciple and is destined to become a Grandmaster."

"Ninth Brother has met him?"

"I've met him twice. He's a good person, very amiable."

"Tch!"

The two turned their heads to look.

Chu Zhichuan's handsome face was suppressing a smile.

"Tenth Brother, what are you laughing at?"

"I'm laughing at Ninth Brother's naivety," Chu Zhichuan sneered: "Amiable? To actually think that Jiang Qiuge is amiable, hah!"

Chu Zhiting frowned.

Chu Zhichuan snorted: "This Chief Jiang is very arrogant and doesn't put us in his eyes at all. The so-called amiability is just wearing a mask."

Chu Zhiting said: "Tenth Brother, you're too harsh. Judge by actions, not by intentions. No matter what he thinks, look at what he does."

"The arrogance is obvious at a glance. Ninth Brother, you're too slow!" Chu Zhichuan sneered: "So what if he's the future Palace Master of the Baiyun Sword Palace? So what if he's a Grandmaster? What's there to be arrogant about! We are the Emperor's direct grandsons, the bloodline of the Chu clan!"

Chu Zhiting shook his head: "Grandmasters are qualified to be arrogant."

Chu Zhiyuan said: "Tenth Brother, aside from arrogance, what is this Chief Jiang's character like?"

"...There are no flaws. Arrogant, hypocritical, but he disguises it very well, and there's nothing to criticize," Chu Zhichuan snorted.

Chu Zhiyuan slowly nodded.

If that's the case, then this Chief Jiang will probably meet me and won't directly disrespect Prince Qing's mansion. He will maintain superficial respect.

As the three were talking, others arrived one after another, greeted each other, and then began to practice the Small Ziyang Art.

The last to arrive was the Eighteenth Prince, Chu Mingxuan, with a saber at his left waist and a sword at his right.

He came to Chu Zhiyuan and directly took off the long sword from his waist, sheath and all, and threw it over: "Fourth, it's yours!"

"Thank you, Eighteenth Uncle."

Chu Zhiyuan smiled and took it, lowering his head to examine the long sword.

The dark green scabbard was covered with vine patterns, like countless intertwined vines, and an ancient and vicissitudes aura wafted over him.

The silver sword guard had faint cloud patterns, with silver light flowing, faintly revealing its nobility.

The long sword was slowly drawn from its scabbard, and the blade was as bright as an autumn lake. A wisp of cold light flickered at the edge of the blade, and a chilling air quickly spread out.

Chu Zhiyuan pinched a sword seal with his left hand and gently stroked the blade, feeling the coldness, hardness, and flexibility. He inexplicably felt a sense of calmness, and his mind seemed to quickly calm down, and his heart was at peace.

Chu Zhiyuan raised his eyebrows.

This was a bit strange.

Holding a sharp blade, the desire to kill arises.

This is the nature of weapons, and it is also the nature of people. When weapons and people are combined, they will stimulate the violent impulses deep within.

But touching this blade had the opposite effect.

Once a martial artist starts fighting with others, adrenaline is immediately secreted, making them excited and their blood boiling.

This situation has both advantages and disadvantages.

The advantage is that this excitement makes them fearless, unaware of pain, and reckless.

The disadvantage is that the mind inevitably loses its calmness and reason, and most of the time they act on instinct, not thinking before doing, but the body acting before the brain.

This sword can calm the mind and spirit, allowing the wielder to remain calm and think during battle. This alone makes it worthy of the name of a treasure sword.

He raised his head and smiled, "Good sword!"

Chu Mingxuan said, "I haven't figured out what secrets this sword holds. Fourth, you can study it yourself."

Chu Zhiyuan slowly nodded.

Even if he couldn't find out any other secrets, the fact that it could calm the mind and spirit alone made it an extremely rare treasure sword.

He pinched a sword seal with his left hand and stroked the blade several times before reluctantly returning the sword to its scabbard.

There were too many people now, so it was not suitable to study it in detail. It was not too late to study it slowly after returning to the Prince's mansion.