Though Shi Feng was unknown, he was actually quite wealthy among the inner disciples. First, he received a fixed monthly allowance of five crystals from the sect. Since he didn't practice, buy elixirs, or purchase magical instruments, he didn't spend any of this money, so he steadily earned sixty crystals a year. Second, he received a monthly salary from the weapon refining hall, and since he was skilled, he could easily pocket twenty to thirty crystals a month. Third, he also worked for Gu Mingsi. Actually, there was more than one Gu Mingsi. After Gu Mingsi's encouragement, three or four other wealthy young men from similar families came to Shi Feng for work. As a result, Shi Feng had accumulated a staggering five or six hundred crystals a year.
He took out ten crystals, ready to raise the price, fearing the sullen Taoist priest wouldn't agree. But the Taoist priest's face was already beaming. "Junior brother, why are you so polite? Even if it's just a small thing, I'll do it for you. Just ask how many copies you want." As he spoke, he quickly took the crystals, looked them over, and placed them in his arms.
For cultivators, jade slips were like paper and ink in the Imperial Academy; they cost nothing. Ten crystals could buy hundreds of jade slips.
Shi Feng had originally chosen only five jade slips, but after hearing the black-faced Taoist's tone, he picked out three more and brought them over. Without a word, the black-faced Taoist took out the jade slips and quickly copied them. After he was done, he asked, "Anything else?"
Shi Feng said, "No more. Thank you, Senior Brother. I'll take my leave now." The black-faced Taoist priest walked him all the way to the stairs and said, "Take care, Junior Brother. Come back often when you have time. If you forget to bring the jade slip, feel free to look for me. My Taoist name is Lu Zhen."
Shi Feng took the jade slip and went to find Chang Qing first, asking the eldest brother to project the contents of the jade slip into his consciousness. Chang Qing took a quick look at the contents, which included two basic body refining techniques and five classics on refining equipment. He nodded, used his magic power, and wrote all the contents into Shi Feng's sea of consciousness.
Upon returning to Sword Forging Valley, Shi Feng began to comprehend the two body-refining techniques. To his disappointment, they were truly superficial. The "Iron Skin Technique" merely used gold spiritual energy to refine the skin, making it as hard as iron. The "Blue Dragon Technique," despite its impressive name, also merely used wood spiritual energy to refine the skin, surpassing even the Iron Skin Technique. It took Shi Feng only three days to fully comprehend both codes.
Afterwards, Shi Feng began to comprehend the nameless technique. This nameless technique was indeed profound. Despite having the foundation of the previous two techniques, Shi Feng's understanding was still very slow. Some parts were completely incomprehensible. Shi Feng sighed and could only ask his senior brother Chang Qing for help with some of the terms he didn't understand. Chang Qing listened and shared what he knew with Shi Feng. He could only say, "As for the body training technique, I'm also a layman. Why don't you ask Manager Luo? He's also a body cultivator and quite advanced in his practice."
Shi Feng was stunned. He realized Luo San was also a body cultivator. Upon closer inquiry, he discovered that Luo San's background bore some resemblance to his own. Luo San wasn't from an aristocratic family either. He was originally a blacksmith in the mortal realm, but he was renowned for his skills. Gan Chu, the Master of the Weapon Refining Hall, discovered him while traveling through the mortal realm and was impressed by his craftsmanship. Despite Luo San's lack of spiritual roots, Gan Chu still accepted him into the Taiji Sect, enrolling him in the Outer Gate Weapon Refining Hall.
Although Luo San entered the world of cultivation, he had no family support and it was still difficult for him to make a living. He knew that strength was respected in the world of cultivation and without some protective treasures, he might die at any time, so he practiced body refining techniques.
Shi Feng immediately turned around and went to find Luo San. Shi Feng and Luo San had always had a good relationship. When Shi Feng asked about physical cultivation techniques, Luo San was initially stunned, but he quickly understood. Shi Feng, lacking spiritual roots, had also come from a poor mortal family, and they shared a common affliction. Furthermore, Luo San's forthright personality made him answer every question without reservation. However, Luo San wasn't cultivating any Iron Skin Technique or Azure Dragon Art. His technique was acquired from a sect elder using a premium material, and he couldn't pass it on to Shi Feng.
With Luo San's help, Shi Feng's speed of comprehension of the nameless martial arts gradually increased, and finally he had comprehended 80% of the first level.
This nameless technique, as Dao Chong had predicted, was profoundly profound and distinct from common body-building techniques. Body-building techniques typically involve absorbing spiritual energy to strengthen the body. The specific type of spiritual energy absorbed naturally varied from technique to technique. For example, the Iron Skin Technique absorbed gold spiritual energy, the Azure Dragon Technique absorbed wood spiritual energy, and Luo San's technique absorbed fire spiritual energy. After absorbing spiritual energy, internal Qi practitioners stored it in their Dantian, while physical practitioners used it to refine their bodies.
Generally speaking, from the outside to the inside, from the skin, muscles, and bones, they are strengthened one by one, and finally the whole body becomes extremely powerful, and every move can produce great power.
However, the nameless technique was countless times more complicated than the average body refining technique. It was divided into five levels, each of which was divided into five stages, for a total of twenty-five stages. For example, the first level had five stages: golden skin, wooden bones, water blood, fire tendons, and earth muscles. This meant first absorbing the golden spirit to refine the skin, then using the wood spirit to refine the bones, and then using the water spirit to cleanse the blood...
There cannot be any mistakes during this process. If the golden spiritual energy that tempers the skin is accidentally introduced into the bones, all previous efforts will be wasted.
If all five levels meet the requirements, it is possible to form the first level of the building.
The second level is water skin, fire bones, wood blood, earth tendons, and metal muscles. According to the five elements, metal skin gives birth to water skin, wood bones give birth to fire bones... Naturally, no step can go wrong during this period.
The third, fourth, and even fifth floors all use different spiritual energies to temper the body in turn. Finally, the skin, bones, blood, and muscles all contain the five elements of true qi, and then seals are formed to integrate the five parts into one.
After Shi Feng finished comprehending it, he was stunned. He thought to himself, could this technique be a scam? How could a body cultivator with less than a hundred years of lifespan successfully cultivate such a complex technique? Could it be someone just casually wrote it down to be fun?
But the senior master Dao Chong said in person that this nameless martial art had a great origin and was very advanced, so he couldn't help but believe it.
Shi Feng thought about it and decided that since he had nothing to do, he might as well practice.
Of course, before practicing, there is still a problem that needs to be solved, that is, what method to use to absorb the vital energy of heaven and earth. This unnamed body refining method did not mention it. Shi Feng thought that since it was not mentioned, it didn't matter as long as it was a method that could absorb the vital energy of heaven and earth.
Most body-refining techniques only absorb a single element of celestial energy, but this unnamed technique requires the absorption of five distinct elements of energy. Coincidentally, Shi Feng only knew one introductory technique, the Pure Yuan Gong, which described the breathing techniques for the five distinct elements of energy. However, Shi Feng had initially ruled it out. Senior Brother Changqing had said that the Pure Yuan Gong's absorption rate was very average, making it a very basic technique, something even beginners wouldn't bother practicing. Since he had plenty of crystals, why not go to the Sutra Library and find five more superior techniques to practice?
At that moment, Shi Feng excitedly came to the Sutra Library with his pockets full of crystals. The black-faced Taoist priest Lu Zhen was still guarding the second floor. He was naturally very enthusiastic when he saw Shi Feng, but after hearing Shi Feng's request, Lu Zhen smiled bitterly and said, "Junior brother, there are of course many exercises on the third floor, but to enter the third floor to view them, you need a warrant from our master, and you can only copy one copy at a time. I wonder if you have a warrant?"
Shi Feng was stunned on the spot. He naturally couldn't go to Liu Yunzi to ask for a warrant, so he could only leave with a lot of complaints and disappointment. Lu Zhen also saw him to the door in disappointment.
In fact, Shi Feng was wrong. It was not because the sect was stingy, but because the choice of martial arts was a very cautious matter. The type of martial arts that disciples in the Qi Refining Stage practiced was chosen by the master based on many factors such as personal spiritual roots, physique, comprehension, and personality. Changing martial arts at will was a taboo and had to be approved by the master.
Shi Feng returned to the Sword Casting Valley, feeling helpless and could only use the Pure Yuan Gong as usual to absorb the essence of heaven and earth through the Pure Yuan Gong to practice this nameless body-refining technique.
Sunrise and moonset, nearly half a year had passed in the blink of an eye. Shi Feng had barely left Sword Forging Valley, cultivating his nameless body-refining technique while delving into the art of refining. At his current rate of refining materials, he only needed to spend half a day completing the sect's tasks, leaving the rest of the day free for his own cultivation.
How to cultivate? The first thing to consider is location. Shi Feng has residences in both Yuxiu Peak and Zhujian Valley, but he hasn't considered either of them. The reason is simple: the density of spiritual energy. Every cultivator knows that cultivation must be done in a place with pure and rich spiritual energy; that way, cultivation will be twice as effective with half the effort.
Although Tai Chi Sect was built on the Eye of Spiritual Energy, the spiritual energy in various parts of the sect varied in quality. The most abundant spiritual veins and eyes had long been divvied up by the sect's top leaders, while lesser areas were seized by the Foundation Establishment disciples, followed by the Inner Sect Qi Refining disciples, and finally, the Outer Sect disciples. It's easy to imagine what good areas were left for them.
However, for Shi Feng, there are indeed good places to choose from, where the spiritual energy quality is no less than that of the sect's Golden Core Patriarch's retreat cave. These are places like the Earth Fire Furnace and the Wood Spirit Hall.
The reason these special places in the Sword Forging Valley were so dense with spiritual energy was originally intended for refining materials. However, Shi Feng was able to multitask. While extracting the purple-winged insects in the Wood Spirit Hall, he simultaneously absorbed this rich wood spiritual energy to break through the "wood bone" barrier in the first level of the Wuming Body Refining Technique. After all, he was only a low-ranking disciple, and his spiritual energy intake was limited, so there was no sign of spiritual energy surging. Therefore, he worked and practiced at the same time, completely unnoticed!
Over time, word spread within the sect that there was an outer disciple in Sword Forging Valley who, due to his impoverished family, toiled frantically, day and night, to earn crystals, sometimes even sleeping in the refining room. This story was used by some sect elders as an "inspirational story," a lesson for those lazy and idle disciples.
Three months passed, and Shi Feng's practice of the nameless body-refining technique was quite successful. This was due, firstly, to his strong constitution; secondly, to his multitasking and diligent dedication; and thirdly, to the rich spiritual energy in the refining chamber. Over the course of several months, he had made minor progress in developing his golden skin, wooden bones, watery blood, and earthen flesh. His tendons and bones suddenly became much stronger. He tried breathing in spiritual energy and energizing his skills, and his skin actually took on a faint yellowish sheen. A sharp knife prodding it only left a faint white mark.
Shi Feng was overjoyed, but at the same time, frustrated. He couldn't cultivate the "Fire Tendon" stage no matter what. He had previously discovered that his fire attribute was weakest. No matter how much he absorbed fire spirit energy in the underground furnace, once stored in his dantian, it disappeared in an instant. Unexpectedly, applying it to cleansing muscles and bones would have the same poor effect. The first level of the nameless body refining technique required the completion of all five stages. Shi Feng tried countless times before finally giving up. Fortunately, he wasn't focused on achieving a specific level; as long as he could strengthen his body and improve his strength, that was enough.
Therefore, after repeated attempts without success, Shi Feng rarely went to the Earth Fire Furnace, and instead spent his energy on constantly tempering the four levels of golden skin, wooden bones, water blood, and earth muscle.
One day, when Shi Feng was refining ice jade powder in Ningshui Palace, a disciple suddenly came to tell him that Manager Luo wanted him to come over.
Shi Feng rushed to the weapon refining room where Luo San was, and saw three other disciples in the room. Luo San was talking when he saw Shi Feng come in and said, "Shi Feng, put down your work. You don't have to do anything for this month. I have another important task for the four of you."
A burly middle-aged man among the three disciples asked, "Master Luo, what is this important task? Stop playing tricks on me. The four of us are all here now." Master Luo replied, "Don't ask me about it. Come with me to see the Master, and he will tell you."
"What? Did Master Ganchu summon us?"