Chapter Eighty-One: Little Ghost Guards the House, Eighteen Strikes in Succession

Then, Chen Yushu asked a few more questions. Little Yin answered each one, but ultimately, she was just a young ghost, her age limited, equivalent to a normal child of four or five years old, so many questions she couldn’t answer very clearly.

As for matters concerning Sister Qiao, he was also reluctant to ask too much.

So Chen Yushu simply admonished her on a few things, such as not to wander off, and especially to avoid that household at the very edge.

“Don’t worry, Little Yin is very obedient and would never run around,” she replied, nodding repeatedly with a cautious look.

Seeing this, Chen Yushu felt reassured and withdrew from the spirit-walking state.

Relieved, Little Yin happily hugged the two sticks of incense and began inhaling their scent, her belly visibly swelling.

She couldn’t help but pat her stomach and press down, making it look a little smaller before she resumed her absorption.

“This little one seems quite greedy,” Chen Yushu chuckled, then glanced up at the household charm on the beam, now reduced to ashes, and decided against pasting a new one.

Although the charm posed no real threat to Little Yin, it would cause her some trouble. Now, with a little ghost guarding the house, there was no need to worry about unclean things drawing near.

As for the corpse-raiser… He had casually inquired about him during the day. The man was said to be an outsider who moved in more than half a year ago. Other than being a bit reclusive, there was nothing particularly unusual about him.

Most importantly, there had been no reports of unnatural deaths nearby.

As long as he didn’t provoke trouble, nothing should happen.

The crucial point was that he had just asked Mr. Chen, the landlord, for a favor; to suggest moving at this time would be inappropriate.

Moreover, this place was indeed very close to the Tranquil Academy.

With that, Chen Yushu once more entered meditation, beginning to cultivate the White Tiger Visualization Method.

One after another, images of white tigers formed in his mind—each one unique in expression, yet all lifelike.

By now, he could visualize at least twenty white tigers, as if a series of vivid paintings unrolled in his mind.

White Tiger Visualization Method +5

Incense Dao Progress +1

After a night of cultivation, Chen Yushu felt clear-headed and refreshed.

In the state of deep meditation, his cultivation efficiency was incredibly high, causing rapid progress in the White Tiger Visualization Method.

Even his advancement in the immortal techniques had stabilized, improving a little every day.

He glanced over at Little Yin, who was squatting by several bundles of incense, counting on her fingers one by one, her face radiant with joy as she dreamed.

When she ran out of fingers, she started counting her toes, and then after finishing with her toes, she went back to her fingers, her expression brimming with happiness.

Curious, Chen Yushu entered the spirit-walking state.

“Three, eight, five, two… This bundle has six sticks—enough for me to eat for several days? Three days? No, no, that’s not right, it’s many sets of three days. There are three bundles of three days here, so I can stay for three sets of three days? I want to eat them all…”

Little Yin counted blissfully, then, as if to confirm something, started again from her fingers.

Watching the earnestness on her face, Chen Yushu was tempted to correct her mistake from the start, but seeing her so lost in happiness, he decided to let her be.

Let her enjoy her happiness.

He rose and left the room.

He stoked the fire and cooked, not forgetting to prepare his medicine—one pot of Vitality Soup, and one of Nourishing Soup.

Because his strength had been insufficient the day before to complete his external training, he planned to focus on stance practice in the coming days to improve his level.

Through this, he could also enhance his physical power more quickly.

Once the medicine was ready, he drank both pots.

Then, standing in the courtyard, he began his practice.

Once, twice, thrice…

King of Medicine Stance Practice +6

King of Medicine Stance Practice +5

King of Medicine Stance Practice +7

...

His stance experience grew rapidly.

King of Medicine Stance Practice: Small Accomplishment (254/400)

“With the experience value more than halfway, my strength has increased again. If I keep at it for another two days, I should be able to advance from Small Accomplishment to Great Accomplishment.”

Filled with anticipation, Chen Yushu rested briefly, then went to the backyard to practice his throwing technique.

His throwing skill had already reached Great Accomplishment (579/800); he wasn’t far from filling the experience bar and reaching the next level.

However, progress was much slower at this stage; after an hour of practice, he only gained about fifty points.

But he wasn’t impatient.

At this rate, in two or three days, the skill would improve again.

Afterwards, he washed up and prepared to go out.

But just as he was about to leave, he remembered Little Yin and quickly returned. She was now playing with a few small beads she’d found somewhere.

Chen Yushu entered the spirit-walking state and reminded her not to wander, especially not to go near the house in the far corner.

“Don’t worry, big brother, Little Yin is very obedient and won’t run around.”

She looked up at him with wide eyes.

Satisfied, Chen Yushu left.

Arriving at the pharmacy, he greeted a few familiar apprentices and headed straight to the second floor.

The shopkeeper Su had not yet arrived.

Unconcerned, Chen Yushu went to the practice ground and began to train.

He continued with the Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada footwork.

He had already begun learning this technique yesterday; now, his goal was to master it today.

Focusing his mind, he guided his strength into his feet and executed Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada. His body shot forward like an untethered wild horse.

Eight steps in succession.

From one end of the practice ground to the other, covering more than four zhang.

Fortunately, the practice area was spacious and the floor was made of sturdy bricks, so his movements didn’t make much noise.

Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada +5

He glanced at his attribute panel, knowing that his impressive progress was due to his remarkable comprehension.

Otherwise, this footwork wouldn’t yield a three-point experience gain in a single practice.

It was the same with the Concealing Yin Art and Aura-Viewing Technique.

When only lightly focused, each practice yielded only one or two points, but in deep meditation, experience would soar by four or five points each time.

It could be said that he was currently experiencing rapid growth.

“Perhaps this is the exhilaration of being a genius?”

With a sigh, Chen Yushu resumed practice.

Once, twice, three times...

Suddenly, he felt a spark of inspiration. He took several steps, each spanning eight feet, and after seven steps, as he was about to hit the wall, he quickly drew a deep breath, pivoted, and sidestepped.

He nearly stumbled and fell.

“That was close! I almost ran into the wall.”

Chen Yushu let out a light breath, a smile spreading across his face.

Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada—mastered.

His speed had suddenly increased, which was why he almost collided with the wall.

“You’re here early.”

Just then, a voice sounded behind him.

He turned and saw it was indeed Shopkeeper Su. He quickly greeted, “Master!”

“Mm. Practicing Eight Steps to Catch the Cicada just now?”

“Yes!”

“Not bad, you’ve picked it up quickly.”

Su Ming nodded, now gradually accepting the fact that Chen Yushu was a prodigy, so his expression remained calm. Without wasting any time, he said, “Next, I’ll teach you blade techniques.”

“Yes, Master!” Chen Yushu replied energetically, standing up at once.

“The blade technique is called Eighteen Linked Blades. Don’t be fooled by the simple name; it’s a blade art of formidable destructive power. This technique is renowned for its speed—one strike following another, unbroken, unending. The movements themselves are not complicated; the real challenge lies in the application of strength in your arms. I’ll first teach you the forms; once you’re familiar with them, then you’ll learn how to channel your power. Mastering that will make progress much faster.”

Su Ming gazed at Chen Yushu, his expression unusually stern.

Chen Yushu nodded, full of anticipation.

The practice ground was obviously Su Ming’s own training space, with a weapon rack to the side. He took a long blade and began to demonstrate.

Fearing Chen Yushu might miss the details, he performed each movement slowly and deliberately.

With his scholarly clarity, Chen Yushu’s memory had improved greatly, now nearly photographic; once through was enough for him to memorize every move.

On the second demonstration, he was already analyzing the changes in strength and simulating the inner flow of energy.

“All right, try it yourself.”

Seeing the eagerness on Chen Yushu’s face, Su Ming prompted him.

Chen Yushu nodded, took the blade from his master, and began to practice.

Each move was a near-perfect replica, the tip of the blade angled slightly upward, then slashing down, the blade twisting, retracting, rising, and descending again.

One strike after another, not fast, but creating a sense of unbroken, endless momentum.

Soon, he had completed the Eighteen Linked Blades.

“Good, very good. However, you still need to control your strength, especially when slashing—you need an unstoppable, forward-driving momentum.”

Su Ming’s face twitched slightly. Even though he’d long accepted his apprentice’s genius, it was still astonishing to see Chen Yushu master the forms after only two demonstrations. In the end, he could only offer a minor critique.

Seeing Chen Yushu nod with an attentive expression, Su Ming was satisfied. He wasted no time and began teaching the methods for channeling power in the Eighteen Linked Blades.

“No martial art is complete with just the forms; without the application of strength, it’s just empty flourish and lacks real power. Only by channeling strength can you split mountains and shatter stone, the blade cleaving through steel.”

He explained as he demonstrated, detailing the changes in force in every move.