parentshiftbook Chapter 74 Keep your wealth hidden
Chapter 74 Keep your wealth hidden
The next day.
Lu Cheng and his companions got up early and headed towards the summit.
The mountains and forests along the way were lush and quiet, and the birdsong was melodious.
Lu Cheng hadn't yet sensed the "heavenly palace on earth," but the blessed land truly lived up to its name.
However, Liu Cong's incessant lecturing diminished the beauty of the scenery along the way by a significant amount:
"Although the entire 600-mile Lingbi Mountain range belongs to our Dongyang Sect, the main area of the sect is only within these few dozen miles of mountains."
"There are quite a few hills of varying sizes, but there are only nine main ones."
After Liu Cong finished speaking, he paused for a moment.
Pang Ju quickly followed up with:
"Is Senior Brother Liu referring to the nine peaks and eleven branches of the Dongyang Sect?"
After yesterday's "forced sale," even Zhang Lin, who is usually very talkative, has completely lost the desire to talk to Liu Cong.
Only Pang Ju remained, struggling to maintain the atmosphere.
Every time Liu Cong finished speaking, he would exclaim, "Oh dear," "Really?" or "I see."
When someone responded, Liu Cong naturally didn't sense anything unusual.
"Indeed, it seems Junior Brother Pang has indeed read my summary booklet carefully. Not bad at all."
Lu Cheng caught a glimpse of Pang Ju secretly grimacing out of the corner of his eye, and immediately found it amusing.
How could any martial artist in the entire Dongyang Prefecture not know about the Dongyang Sect's "Nine Peaks and Eleven Lineages"?
Even if you don't know, someone will tell you as soon as you get here.
Liu Cong, however, remained oblivious and continued making noise.
After enduring for a long time, they finally arrived at the Juyun Palace.
Upon arriving here, Lu Cheng finally saw the true appearance of the two pavilions.
The building on the left is a solemn, multi-story pavilion.
The building is square with upturned eaves and corners. The second and third floors have terraces surrounded by carved railings, where one can lean on the railings and look into the distance.
A plaque reading "Zushi Lou" hangs under the eaves.
The one on the right is octagonal, without a terrace, with eight eaves that gently rise like a bird spreading its wings, and is inscribed with "Canggong Pavilion".
Liu Cong took a few breaths and pointed to the Ancestral Hall on the left, introducing it as follows:
"The mountains are not close to each other. In order to make it convenient for disciples to worship the ancestral masters of the past generations, an ancestral master pavilion has been set up on each of the nine main peaks."
"You'd better come and worship often; who knows, your sincerity might catch the eye of some master."
As he spoke, he walked toward the Zanggong Pavilion on the right.
"However, today we need to go to the Zanggong Pavilion on the right first."
Upon arriving at the pavilion, he took out a jade plaque and affixed it to a lamppost in front of the stone steps at the entrance.
Then, the jade plaque and the lamppost lit up with a faint white light, and then a layer of light, like ripples on water, spread out three feet around the entire Zanggong Pavilion.
Zhang Lin let out a low cry:
"Such a large-scale formation is still activated!"
"The Dongyang Sect is indeed a large and powerful family. The formation of the Cuiyun Temple is only activated when the abbot and elders are not present."
The light shield lasted only three breaths before gradually fading and disappearing.
Liu Cong took back the jade token, forcing a smug smile as he said:
"The Hidden Merit Pavilion is usually unguarded, so this kind of formation was set up."
"It doesn't have much power; it's mainly for warning and deterring. If someone tries to force their way in without the token being deactivated, it will be triggered instantly, and the disciples of the front hall steward will come running upon hearing the commotion."
"If you wish to enter in the future, simply go to the Hall of Deacons and find the deacon disciple, and we will help you open it."
As he spoke, he reached out and pushed the door open.
The opening of the gate seemed to trigger some kind of mechanism.
The candles hanging on both walls lit up automatically with a "poof".
"Come in, this first floor contains all the sect's scriptures."
"If you have nothing to do on weekdays, you might as well come and wander around this floor more often; it will be of great help to your spiritual practice."
Zhang Lin stood behind him and pursed his lips.
Li Cong himself was only at the late stage of the Qi Refining realm.
But with that tone and manner, someone who didn't know better would think he was in the late stage of Qi Refining.
The group walked through the gaps in the bookshelves.
This Zanggong Pavilion is quite unique, with a staircase located in the very center that spirals upwards.
With a creaking sound, the five people went up to the second floor.
"This is where all kinds of cultivation techniques and martial arts skills are located. You can take your time to choose."
"After it's adjusted, you can take it to the third floor to copy it. The third floor is empty and quite bright."
After Li Cong finished speaking, he found a stool by the window and sat down.
Lu Cheng and the other three couldn't wait to disperse.
The second floor is small, with fewer than twenty bookshelves.
Lu Cheng first walked around and looked at each item in turn.
Of the twenty bookshelves, sixteen contained martial arts manuals.
Surprisingly, it included the Dongyang Sect's most treasured martial arts technique.
The "Purple Qi Spirit Guiding Technique" is a low-grade Heavenly Rank technique.
The remaining fifteen are martial arts techniques, including the other ten major branches.
For example, the superior-grade Earth-rank techniques such as "Minor Longevity Technique," "Pure Void Skill," and "Great Harmony Primordial Qi Guide."
In addition to the main text of the cultivation technique, each bookshelf also contains a large number of analyses.
Soon, the four of them gathered in front of the bookshelf of "Purple Qi Spirit Guiding Technique".
Zhang Lin took out the book and opened it in front of everyone.
But gradually, they realized something was wrong.
This cultivation manual only contains content on the Refining Strength stage; the rest is completely blank.
The four exchanged a glance and immediately picked up the cultivation manuals from the other bookshelves to look through them.
But the results were all the same.
Lu Cheng also glanced at the bookshelves containing martial arts techniques.
It was discovered that only martial arts techniques below the mid-level of the human rank were included in the complete text.
The others only have names and descriptions.
No wonder there are only four bookshelves of martial arts manuals.
It would be better to just prepare a catalog, which would save paper.
Pang Ju hurriedly asked Li Cong, who was by the window:
"Senior Brother Li, why are there only Qi Refining Realm cultivation techniques here?"
Upon hearing this, Li Cong, who was standing by the window, turned his head and said in a deliberately leisurely manner:
"Each of these techniques is a secret transmission of the sect; how could we possibly leave the complete text here?"
"Moreover, the techniques you practiced before were not from the Dongyang Sect, so you naturally have to start from scratch now. Even if we gave you the follow-up techniques, you still wouldn't be able to practice them."
"Choose your cultivation method first. Once you have mastered the cultivation technique, your master will naturally teach you the next one."
"However, don't choose the 'Purple Qi Spirit Guiding Technique,' as only the disciples of the sect leader and the three Qi Refining Elders are qualified to cultivate it."
Pang Ju and his two companions were greatly disappointed.
However, they are still at least half a year away from perfection, and even if they obtain the subsequent cultivation methods now, they will not be able to cultivate them.
He then obediently returned to the bookshelf to make his selection.
A short while later, the three of them took the chosen techniques upstairs to copy them.
Lu Cheng, however, did not stand in front of the martial arts bookshelf to browse through the complete books on weaponry and martial arts.
The [River-Blocking Halberd Technique] is still under development and requires many martial arts skills as resources. It's a good opportunity to make use of the martial arts skills here.
Before long, Liu Cong couldn't hold back any longer and went to Lu Cheng's side, asking:
"Why isn't Junior Brother Lu choosing a cultivation method? Why is he looking at these low-level martial arts techniques instead?"
Lu Cheng sneered inwardly.
After perfecting the cultivation of internal strength, the internal strength becomes completely unified.
To learn other techniques, you only need to familiarize yourself with the flow of energy.
Liu Cong knew perfectly well that he had perfected his internal strength training, yet he deliberately asked this question, clearly indicating that there was a problem.
Since he had just arrived at the Dongyang Sect, he couldn't have offended anyone before.
It seems that Zhang Lin's words earlier led to Liu Cong taking notice of him.
The ancients were right: "Don't flaunt your wealth, don't show off your riches!"
Lu Cheng closed his martial arts manual, looked at Liu Cong, and asked in a calm tone:
"Senior Brother Liu, I have now reached the pinnacle of my internal energy cultivation. Even if I were to start over, it would only take a few days. May I ask which master I should seek further instruction from?"