Chapter 137: Snow-Treading Ascendant Technique, Completion of the Medicine King's Power-Locking Skill, and the Letter

Because of this, Chen Yushu did not care much about the cultivation technique itself.

After all, his current cultivation speed was already astonishingly fast.

"Sister Qiao'er, is there a big difference between before and after entering the Dao?"

After breakfast, Chen Yushu asked casually.

Hearing this, Liu Qiao'er paused to think for a moment before replying, "Before entering the Dao, one cultivates incense and spiritual karma. But after entering the Dao, the primary focus of your improvement is your divine soul. Of course, this does not mean your spiritual karma is no longer important. Rather, your spiritual karma has merged completely with your divine soul. The divine soul is the spiritual karma, and the spiritual karma is the divine soul. The stronger the divine soul, the deeper the spiritual karma."

Chen Yushu understood.

Although he had not yet forged a divine soul, he had gained an understanding of this state through the Dao-entry method.

Entering the Dao required undergoing the trial of the fire of body-burning to forge the divine soul.

The three fires of heaven, earth, and man were used to scorch one's three souls and seven魄 in order to cast the divine soul.

These three fires were precisely the spiritual karma of a nether-walking cultivator.

The three souls and seven魄 were the soul inherent to a human being.

Only by combining the two could a special product be formed: the divine soul.

This was why Liu Qiao'er said that the divine soul had merged with the spiritual karma, and enhancing the divine soul meant simultaneously enhancing one's spiritual karma.

"Therefore, mere visualization techniques are somewhat insufficient for cultivation after entering the Dao. What we practice now are out-of-body techniques. Take me, for example; I practice the *Treading Snow Ascension Technique*. It involves imagining your own body as a snowy mountain, while your divine soul is yourself. Every step you take is stepping into the snow to climb higher. When you climb to a certain degree and feel as though you are about to step right out of your body, your divine soul detaches along with it. This is the out-of-body state of the divine soul. Once your divine soul leaves the body, you will find that the world you perceive is vastly different. The speed at which you absorb spiritual particles is countless times faster than before. A mere incense stick's worth of cultivation can rival the effect of one, two, three, or even four days of cultivation previously. Unfortunately, my divine soul is still too weak right now, and the preparation time required to leave the body using the *Treading Snow Ascension Technique* is too long. Otherwise, if I could constantly cultivate in the divine soul state, my strength would definitely grow even faster."

At this point, Liu Qiao'er felt a slight trace of regret.

With the divine soul out of the body, the perception of spiritual particles between heaven and earth was incomparably intimate and clear.

Cultivating in this state was like a tiger entering a flock of sheep; she could grab them by the handful, swallowing them casually to quickly ingest them into her mouth and rapidly grow her strength.

The only thing she regretted was that the duration of stay was too short.

"So that's how it is."

Chen Yushu understood in a flash.

He finally realized why he had occasionally sensed Sister Qiao'er's divine soul leaving her body last night, only for it to vanish very quickly.

She must have been cultivating at those times.

It was just that after the divine soul left the body, she could not remain for long, forcing her to withdraw and then spend a considerable amount of time using the *Treading Snow Ascension Technique* to exit the body once more for cultivation...

"The most drastic change, however, is in terms of strength. The exact same methods, when executed at the Dao-entry realm, have a vastly different impact."

As she spoke, Liu Qiao'er casually raised a hand.

*Boom!*

A terrifying oppressive force descended rapidly, causing Chen Yushu's footsteps to stumble. He had to muster all his breath just to keep from being forced flat onto the ground.

*Subduing Nether Incantation!*

Chen Yushu naturally recognized that what Liu Qiao'er was casting at this moment was the *Subduing Nether Incantation*.

However, the sheer tyranny of it—acting directly upon him and making him feel such a powerful oppressive force—left him deeply shocked.

The might of this *Subduing Nether Incantation* was far more formidable than his own mastery-level *Subduing Nether Incantation*.

If he guessed correctly, Liu Qiao'er's proficiency in the *Subduing Nether Incantation* was at most at the minor completion stage...

"This is the change in the power of techniques like the *Subduing Nether Incantation* after a breakthrough in realm. The higher the realm, the greater the corresponding power of the techniques. The gap between minor completion and major completion is, after all, difficult to bridge when it comes to the differences in realm levels."

For the first time, Chen Yushu clearly felt the oppressive effect of realm superiority.

It was the exact same *Subduing Nether Incantation*.

He had long since cultivated it to the major completion realm, whereas Sister Qiao'er was still at minor completion.

Yet, when Sister Qiao'er unleashed this incantation with her Dao-entry realm strength, that oppressive force was matchless and overwhelmingly superior to his own major completion incantation backed by three incense sticks' worth of spiritual karma.

Perhaps only when he elevated the *Subduing Nether Incantation* to perfection would he be able to rival her slightly in terms of power?

"Oh? It seems your achievements in martial arts are not low either?"

At this moment, a hint of surprise could not help but surface on Liu Qiao'er's face.

She naturally knew the power of her own *Subduing Nether Incantation*.

Although its effects were obvious when dealing with ghosts and spirits, it could actually influence living people just as easily.

Especially after entering the Dao, once she cast the *Subduing Nether Incantation*, even ordinary people would be forced to kneel to the ground.

Yet when it fell upon Chen Yushu just now, it had failed to shake him in the slightest, which naturally surprised her.

She subsequently realized that Chen Yushu's martial arts prowess was likely no longer weak.

"I have indeed trained my body to be a bit sturdier," Chen Yushu said modestly.

Aside from nether-walking cultivation, he had also poured a great deal of effort into martial arts.

Every day he consumed Qi-Blood Soup, Yuan-Nourishing Soup, and now the Body-Condensing Pill... under this continuous nourishment and cultivation, his martial arts progress had genuinely reached the level of inner-refining the five viscera and six bowels.

In terms of the depth of his qi and blood, he was not far behind Qian Qian, the instructor at the medicine shop.

One had to know that the other party was able to become an instructor precisely because his strength was formidable, ranking at least in the top five within the medicine shop.

This meant that Chen Yushu's qi and blood strength was actually sufficient to rank in the top five of the medicine shop as well.

If martial arts techniques were factored in...

Chen Yushu mentally calculated and estimated that he could probably rank in the top three.

After all, he had cultivated all his martial arts techniques to a relatively high realm.

Below the Internal Energy realm, he was confident he feared no one.

Of course, it was better not to say too much about martial arts.

Doing so would risk sounding like he was boasting.

...

Because of the incident involving Granny Jiang, to prevent any accidents, Liu Qiao'er did not leave immediately.

Chen Yushu naturally welcomed this.

After all, he had numerous doubts regarding nether-walking cultivation.

Previously, lacking guidance from an established mentor, he had been forced to fumble along on his own, making progress through trial and error bit by bit.

Now that he had Liu Qiao'er—a senior cultivator who had already broken through to the Dao-entry realm—by his side, he was too glad to have her, let alone shun her.

Not to mention, her appearance was refined and ethereal; merely standing there, she looked like an immortal descended to the mortal realm... Who could resist stealing a few extra glances at such beauty?

Even so, Chen Yushu soon headed out.

Although he had been granted permission to return home for the New Year in the near future, the time had not yet arrived, so he naturally still needed to report to the medicine shop.

The New Year was approaching.

The atmosphere across the entire street had improved significantly.

Some well-to-do families had already changed into new clothes ahead of time, and the tailoring shops on the street grew much livelier as a result.

Even though it was not a major market day, the grain and rice shops as well as the tailoring shops were bustling with activity.

After all, it was the New Year.

No matter how stingy or frugal one usually was, at this time people could not help but count out some silver coins to tailor a new outfit and procure rations for the celebration.

Even the medicine shop had added a few brand-new red lanterns, and a pair of couplets now adorned the edges of the outer gate.

After exchanging greetings with Steward Zhou, Chen Yushu went straight upstairs.

His master was absent.

However, Chen Yushu did not mind and immediately began practicing his martial arts.

The *Eight-Step Cicada Chase*, the *Eighteen Consecutive Sabers*, the *Gale Saber Technique*, the *Heavy and Light Saber Technique*, and the *Gecko Wall-Climbing Skill* that he had learned not long ago...

Whenever he felt his qi and blood brimming, he would practice the *Medicine King Stance*, the *Medicine King Muscle-Locking Skill*, the *Medicine King Thunder-Swallowing Sound*, the *Tiger Roar and Dragon Chant Skill*...

The process was simple and repetitive, yet it allowed for not an ounce of laziness.

Chen Yushu had always been a diligent person, and the attribute panel acted even more like a whip, driving him to keep growing.

...

"Has the *Medicine King Muscle-Locking Skill* reached perfection?"

Chen Yushu felt a cool sensation coursing through his entire body.

He clearly sensed that as he circulated the *Medicine King Muscle-Locking Skill*, the internal force within his body transformed into needle-sharp points, branching out from one into ten, extending directly into every aspect of his body. They could even pierce into the tiniest nerve endings and the edges of his flesh and blood to strengthen and elevate them.

Consequently, his skin, flesh, tendons, bones, and marrow were all rapidly vibrating at this moment.

His already formidable physique began to grow even stronger once more.

Moreover, the magnitude of this growth was clearly not small.

However, the internal force and energy within his body were already running somewhat short.

For a martial artist, any improvement must be accompanied by consumption.

Especially improvements in physique.

Bit by bit, every ounce of progress was piled up by energy.

Without all those nourishing resources, even if his skill levels had risen, the actual speed of his external conditioning and internal refinement could never have been this fast.

Noticing this, Chen Yushu immediately retrieved a top-grade Body-Condensing Pill from his storage pouch.

Without hesitation, he swallowed it whole.

*Boom!*

Terrifying energy erupted instantly.

Chen Yushu immediately executed the trinity technique.

What was the trinity technique?

The *Medicine King Stance*, the *Medicine King Muscle-Locking Skill*, and the *Medicine King Thunder-Swallowing Sound* made up the three parts.

And the unity was the *Tiger Roar and Dragon Chant Skill*.

At this moment, as he successively cultivated the *Medicine King Thunder-Swallowing Sound* and the *Dragon Chant and Tiger Roar Skill* to the minor completion realm, he was finally able to seamlessly harmonize these cultivation methods and practice them together.

Though the speed was initially very slow and the efficiency extremely low, once it was truly set in motion—practicing the stance while simultaneously executing the muscle-locking skill, the thunder-swallowing sound, and the dragon-tiger roar—it genuinely conditioned every single corner of his entire body.

Especially now that the *Medicine King Muscle-Locking Skill* had reached perfection.

His perception became even clearer.

His skin, flesh, meridians, bones, marrow... even his five viscera and six bowels were rapidly improving.

Once, twice, three times...

Chen Yushu was immersed in his cultivation.

Aside from the physical stances and movements, bizarre roars occasionally escaped his mouth.

At times, the sound cracked like thunder; at other times, it resembled dragons and tigers fighting, roaring and howling.

Moreover, this sound kept increasing in volume.

In the beginning, it was quiet as a mosquito's hum, but now it could clearly resonate throughout the second floor, and occasionally, when someone came close, the people on the first floor could hear it clearly as well.

After a full half-hour of this, Chen Yushu finally came to a stop.

The trinity cultivation method yielded the optimal results.

Every moment, it was improving his skin, flesh, tendons, bones, and marrow, while strengthening his internal organs.

However, the corresponding consumption was also the greatest.

In a mere half-hour, the medicinal potency of that top-grade Body-Condensing Pill had been completely exhausted.

"Fortunately, I used this to thoroughly refine my entire body once again. My strength has surged by another massive margin."

Chen Yushu gently clenched his fist, and the movement directly caused the air to emit a sharp cracking sound.

Previously, while he could achieve this feat, the explosion of sound had never been this sharp and resonant.

"Chen Yushu, there is a letter for you."

Right at that moment, Steward Zhou's voice echoed from downstairs.

Chen Yushu was momentarily stunned.

A letter for him?

Who could it be from?

As if thinking of something, his expression shifted instantly.

"Could it be that divine-favored one?"

Chen Yushu felt a sudden surge of anxiety and suspense.

When dealing with induction disks, maintaining absolute identity confidentiality was paramount.

Not only because of the targeting and hunting by various factions, but also because the gap in strength between him and the other party was simply too vast.

If the other party discovered his true identity and decided to make a move against him, he would have nowhere to hide.

"To think that just by delivering a letter, the other party managed to follow the vine and discover my identity? I should have known better than to send that letter in the first place. Still, since they sent a letter, they probably bear no ill intent toward me."

Muttering inwardly, Chen Yushu went downstairs and accepted the letter from Steward Zhou.

Upon opening it, an expression of utter astonishment appeared on Chen Yushu's face.

"A mistake!"

"The letter wasn't sent by the divine-favored one."

Chen Yushu let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Previously, when the two had communicated through the induction disk, the other party had mentioned sending him some items.

Although he had been polite in his verbal response, it was hard for him not to harbor some expectations in his heart.

Consequently, the moment this letter arrived, his first thought had been of the divine-favored one, assuming the letter contained the "Dao" text he had mentioned earlier.

"This letter was actually sent by the old instructor from Tranquil Academy."

After unfolding the booklet inside, Chen Yushu discovered that the letter had been sent by the elderly instructor he had met while reading books in the Wenchang Pavilion of Tranquil Academy.

The letter mentioned that after their last parting, the instructor had taken a trip to the prefectural city and might not return to Jianghuan Town for a short period, urging him not to slack off in his studies during this time.

It also specifically reminded him not to forget about taking the imperial scholar examination for the title of child scholar coming up next spring.

"I never expected this elderly gentleman to care about me so much."

Seeing this, Chen Yushu could not help but reveal a trace of emotional sentiment.

Back then, entering the Wenchang Pavilion of Tranquil Academy to study was purely to raise his reading proficiency level, which ultimately boiled down to enhancing his meditation realm.

He had never imagined that it would catch the instructor's attention.

Now, even though he was far away in the prefectural city, the instructor still remembered him and had specially dispatched a letter.

"The child scholar examination? Next spring, I'll have to head to Qinghe County for the genius assessment anyway. I might as well take care of both matters together."

Chen Yushu muttered to himself.

...

I'm stuck on the plot and exhausted to death. My head is pounding...