You Promised to Be an Idle Son-in-Law, How Could You Become a Land Immortal?

Chapter 83: Chapter 83: The Midnight Hour Is Here

At dinner, Xiao Wan’er was in high spirits.

The weight that had been pressing on her heart for days was finally lifted, and she couldn’t help but be a little more talkative.

Of course, she directed most of her words at Xiao Wuge, with only a few for Chen Yi.

However, it seemed Xiao Wan’er still remembered the incident from that night. Though she could manage a few words, she hardly dared to look at him.

Chen Yi was inwardly amused but didn’t think much of it.

It had all been a misunderstanding, but in the Great Wei Dynasty, with its emphasis on rites and regulations, a strict separation between men and women was expected.

Certain boundaries did, in fact, need to be observed.

Only that Tiger Girl, Pei Guanli, paid no mind to such customs.

She paid no heed to the rules of her own Mountain Race, let alone the etiquette of the Imperial Court of the Central Plains.

After dinner, Xiao Wan’er saw Chen Yi and Xiao Wuge out of the wooden house. Noticing the rain had finally stopped, she smiled and said,

”It’s been raining for over ten days. I’m glad it’s finally stopped.”

Chen Yi looked up at the night sky. The clouds had indeed parted, revealing a bright moon and a smattering of stars.

However, the air was still chilly and heavy with moisture.

”The rain has stopped. That’s good.”

Chen Yi turned his head to look at Xiao Wan’er, his gaze resting on her face.

Even with only the Medical Skill he had learned in the past few days, he could easily see the sickliness in her features—a body cold, and not an ordinary one.

Combining his knowledge from the *Treatise on Cold Pathogenic and Miscellaneous Diseases* and the profound mysteries of the Medical Dao, he deduced she likely had a ”Body of Declining Life Gate Fire,” meaning ”Cold Toxin in the Marrow.”

However, since he hadn’t taken her pulse or asked about her symptoms, he couldn’t determine the specifics of Xiao Wan’er’s condition.

Xiao Wan’er noticed his stare and instinctively turned her head away.

But she quickly composed herself and said in a natural tone, ”You two should hurry back and rest.”

Chen Yi smiled. ”You should head back inside too, Big Sister. It’s still a bit chilly.”

With that, he took Xiao Wuge and headed back to the Spring Lotus Garden.

Xiao Wan’er, of course, shot a reproachful glare at his retreating back.

Over the past several days, she had grown accustomed to Chen Yi’s forward attitude.

But in front of others—especially the Xiao family—she didn’t want anyone to notice anything strange.

’If anyone were to find out...’

Xiao Wan’er didn’t dare to think further. She unconsciously pulled her cloak tighter and let out a soft sigh.

”He really must stop being so forward and improper,” she murmured. ”Otherwise, for my sake, and for Second Sister’s... what are we to do?”

Chen Yi, of course, was oblivious to Xiao Wan’er’s worries.

After returning to the Spring Lotus Garden, he had Xiaodie take Xiao Wuge to rest.

He, on the other hand, went to his study and, as usual, practiced his Cursive Script and Wei Qing’s Style for a while.

It was not much, only two pages of Yunsong Paper, barely two hundred characters in all.

After briefly tidying the study, Chen Yi listened until he could hear the steady breathing of both Xiaodie and Xiao Wuge. Then he rose, went outside, and walked toward the Purple Bamboo Forest.

Upon reaching its edge, he took off his boots and placed them on the stone path. He then pulled up his trouser legs and the hem of his long robe, and walked barefoot into the bamboo grove.

After days of rain, the grove was still filled with moisture, and the ground was muddy. Wearing shoes would have been wet and slippery, ill-suited for practicing Martial Arts Techniques.

Chen Yi stood quietly for a moment, retracting the Qi Mechanism that the Black Tortoise Concealment Technique had dispersed across the surface of his body. He gathered it back into his Dantian and the Sea of Qi in his Chest, his two great Seas of Qi, before finally settling into the stance of the Big Spear Pile Skill.

With his eyes slightly closed, he guided the Qi Mechanism from his Sea of Qi to continue clearing the Main Meridians in his hands and feet.

Now that the Big Spear Pile Skill had advanced from the Profound Tier to the Earth Tier, the Cultivation method remained the same, but its effects had improved significantly.

Not only was his control over his Qi Mechanism more adept, but the Power gained from cultivating the Pile Skill had also increased substantially.

He had now reached the Power of Four Symbols, equivalent to a strength of 8,000 jin.

Compared to other Martial Artists who cultivated the Big Spear Pile Skill, his Power was more than double theirs.

But if he wanted to advance further and achieve the ”Dragon Power” recorded in the profound mysteries of the Great Success stage of the Martial Arts Body, he still had a long way to go.

He figured it was likely impossible to achieve while still in the Ninth Grade Realm.

「Half an hour later.」

As the four Main Meridians in his hands and feet were cleared, Chen Yi’s body shuddered, and he exhaled a puff of turbid air.

He straightened his posture, flexed his hands and feet, and threw a punch using the Mountain Shattering Force.

BOOM!

A muffled sonic boom echoed out. The wind from his punch was so strong that it snapped a stalk of Purple Bamboo thirty feet away.

Chen Yi glanced at the broken Purple Bamboo, then at his own fist, and a smile touched his lips.

’A punch that creates a wind capable of snapping wood three inches thick. This is the sign that the Main Meridians have been cleared.’

After his burst of joy, Chen Yi settled back into the Big Spear Pile Skill stance. A passage of profound description immediately surfaced in his mind.

”The four Main Meridians of the hands and feet run through the entire body. Once they are cleared, one can draw the Heaven and Earth’s Spiritual Mechanism into the Dantian and the Sea of Qi in the Chest. True Essence will be born, and the breakthrough to the Eighth Grade will occur....”

As Chen Yi comprehended this profound passage, he suddenly felt wisps of Spiritual Mechanism entering his hands and feet through the Pile Skill—a technique that had previously only affected his muscles, bones, skin, meridians, and organs.

He instinctively guided this Spiritual Mechanism along the four Main Meridians, channeling it into his two great Seas of Qi: the Dantian and the one in his Chest.

GURGLE GURGLE.

In that instant, his two great Seas of Qi began to roil like boiling water.

The Qi Mechanism already in his body fused, strand by strand, with the Heaven and Earth’s Spiritual Mechanism. From this fusion, a new, incredibly crystalline yet faint wisp of energy was born.

No, it should be called ”True Essence.”

The moment that single strand of True Essence was born, all the Qi Mechanism within his two great Seas of Qi began to condense and transform. The influx of the Heaven and Earth’s Spiritual Mechanism into his body quickened as well.

As the transformation into True Essence continued, Chen Yi’s consciousness grew hazy. His body felt weightless, as if he were floating in a warm ocean.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Chen Yi’s body jolted as he awoke from his trance.

A screen of light appeared before his eyes: [Cultivation successful. Cultivation: Eighth Grade, Lower Stage.]

Seeing this, Chen Yi couldn’t help but smile.

’It took over a month, but I’ve finally cultivated from a mere mortal into an Eighth Grade Realm Martial Artist.’

He silently assessed his condition and discovered that the changes went beyond the simple birth of True Essence.

After his Cultivation breakthrough, his Power had also increased.

’The Power of Five Symbols! Ten thousand jin!’

Chen Yi threw a test punch, using only twenty percent of his Power, but the True Essence in his body was drawn into his fist.

In the next instant, he saw the wind from his punch coalesce into a tangible form, striking a Purple Bamboo fifty feet away.

SNAP.

With a crisp sound, a small cluster of four Purple Bamboo stalks snapped in unison.

Chen Yi walked over and observed for a moment. Seeing the smooth breaks on the bamboo stalks, he thought, ’The wind from my punch took physical form, just like Sword Qi or Blade Qi that can shatter rock.’

Although this level of Cultivation was still nothing compared to a single finger from his wife, Xiao Jinghong, it was progress nonetheless.

’And at this rate of Cultivation,’ he thought, ’catching up to Xiao Jinghong won’t be an impossible task.’

With that thought, Chen Yi checked the light screen. A smirk flickered across his lips before he moved on to practicing his other Techniques.

His Step Technique and Fist Technique had both reached the Perfection stage for his current realm. His daily Cultivation was now focused on trying to trigger an epiphany.

The only technique lagging behind was the recently learned Dragon-Falling Spear Technique. He had just reached proficiency with it and was still a long way from Minor Success, let alone Perfection.

’Now that I’ve reached the Eighth Grade Realm and have True Essence, I can finally unleash ten percent of the Dragon-slaying Spear’s power.’

Ten percent was ten percent. Chen Yi was content with that—it was far better than before, when just practicing the technique drained all the Qi Mechanism in his body.

Once he broke through to the Seventh Grade and could project his True Essence externally, he would be able to unleash the full power of the Dragon-slaying Spear.

’And if I go even further...’

’Can’t get ahead of myself.’

After cultivating for another full hour, Chen Yi finally stopped. Once he had settled the True Essence and Power within his body, he ambled over to the edge of the pond to wash his muddy feet and legs.

He then put his boots back on and headed for the wooden house.

Just then, the midnight hour arrived—

[Daily Intelligence · Earth-level Top Grade: Half past midnight, on the Chishui Riverbank, the ”Sword Madman” Liu Lang will ambush the Xiao Family’s medicinal herb convoy. Significant Opportunity available.]

Chen Yi scanned the message, his brow furrowing slightly.

’Liu Lang...’