CHAPTER 79: CHAPTER 79: IRON SAND PALM GREAT ACHIEVEMENT!

「The next day.」

Before the sky had completely brightened, Shen Changqing finished his meditation. He came to the courtyard. After absorbing the first wisp of purple Qi between Heaven and Earth, he began another round of arduous cultivation.

In the blink of an eye, three months had passed. During this time, Shen Changqing painstakingly practiced three Martial Arts day after day, doing almost nothing else. He also thought about cultivating his Invincible Golden Body. But after considering it, Shen Changqing quickly gave up on that idea.

It couldn’t be helped. The sixth level of the Invincible Golden Body was exceedingly profound. To break through to the seventh level would normally take several years, or even over a decade of hard work—it was simply impossible. Even if he spent several months in seclusion, the gains wouldn’t be significant. Therefore, Shen Changqing decisively abandoned his original plan.

Moreover, he had already completed his mission of defending Lin’an City and didn’t need to be dispatched on any missions for the coming year. Over the past three months, no one had disturbed him. Jiang Zuo did come to meet him once after completing his mission, but there was no follow-up after that.

At this time, Shen Changqing’s panel had also undergone some changes.

Name: Shen Changqing

Affiliation: Great Qin’s Demon Suppression Division

Identity: Yellow Rank Demon Hunter

Martial Arts: Invincible Golden Body (Level 6, cannot be improved), Heavenly Martial Gang Qi (Level 14, cannot be improved), Hundred Battles Blade Technique (Level 3), Iron Sand Palm (Level 4), Snare Trampling Gang Step (Level 2)

Slaughter Value: 7

After three months of hard cultivation, my Hundred Battles Blade Technique has barely entered the third level. It’s just a tentative step, and I’m still a great distance from fully mastering it.

My Snare Trampling Gang Step, a seven-layer technique, has advanced to the second level. However, the progress isn’t the greatest. The Martial Art that has improved the most is actually the Iron Sand Palm—

Shen Changqing’s mind withdrew from the panel. His greatest gain in the past three months was that his Iron Sand Palm was almost at a state of Perfection. The five-layer Iron Sand Palm was now at the fourth level, and it wasn’t far from the fifth level. Such rapid progression was ultimately due to Shen Changqing’s sturdy physique, which could endure long periods of tempering by iron sand. Otherwise, it would have been impossible to bring the Iron Sand Palm from the third level to near Perfection in just three months.

It’s better to excel in one area than to be mediocre in many!

Now that my Iron Sand Palm is near Perfection, I can devote all my effort to specializing in it.

In the small courtyard, a stove was set up, with a large iron pot resting on top. The pot was filled with iron sand, emitting steam so hot that it seemed to distort one’s vision. With his torso bare, Shen Changqing’s palms stirred through the iron sand; the heat and friction turned his hands slightly red. He paid it no mind, immersing his entire being in the cultivation within the iron sand.

Shen Changqing could distinctly feel a strong transformation taking place in his hands amidst the scorching iron sand. That transformation caused an itching sensation and an unbearable heat, as if even his Invincible Golden Body at the sixth level was struggling to withstand it. The more unbearable the heat became, the more Shen Changqing forced himself to endure. He understood that this was a sign that his Iron Sand Palm was about to achieve Great Achievement.

The sun was high in the sky. The scorching sunlight caused Shen Changqing to break into a sweat. Suddenly, the temperature in his hands buried in the iron sand soared, and the heat within seemed to rush frantically into his palms. The sensation twisted his expression slightly.

Pain!

Very painful!

Ever since his Outer Techniques had developed, only combating powerful Demon Evils could make him feel such pain; there was no other comparison. The cultivation of the Iron Sand Palm earlier, although not easy, was never as painful as this moment. Shen Changqing endured the agony, allowing his hands to transform within the iron sand.

It is unknown how much time passed. His arms shook violently, and all the heat that had penetrated burst out. He then saw the iron pot shake violently and break into pieces, scattering the iron sand all around.

With the iron sand scattered, Shen Changqing paid it no attention. His gaze was completely captivated by his own hands. His normally colored hands now seemed to take on a steel-like hue under the fierce sunlight.

Then, Shen Changqing activated his True Qi, and his hands instantly turned dark. A strong fieriness coalesced at the center of his palms, as if ready to burst forth at any moment.

"HA!"

With a light shout, he struck his palms directly on a wooden post nearby. Stepping back two paces after retracting his hands, one could see that the wooden post now bore two blackened palm prints, and the smell of char emanated from it. He looked down at his palm again, where the pale red color gradually faded.

Normal cultivation of the Iron Sand Palm requires the aid of special medicinal wine. Otherwise, fire poison will invade the body, causing internal injuries. In serious cases, this can become an incurable chronic ailment. However, having achieved mastery in my Outer Techniques, I was able to skip this step without worrying about fire poison entering my body. Now that my Iron Sand Palm has reached Great Achievement, fire poison has coagulated within my hands. If it strikes wooden posts, it can char them. Needless to say, the consequences would be dire if it struck an ordinary person. Even when dealing with Demon Evils, it will surely be effective.

Shen Changqing smiled. The Iron Sand Palm’s rank as a Martial Art wasn’t very high, at most similar to the Seven Kills Blade Technique he previously practiced. But now that the palm technique had reached Great Achievement, its power had soared. Especially the fire poison in his palms; when combined with the pure Yang power of the Heavenly Martial Gang Qi, they enhanced each other greatly and could unleash exceptional strength.

Demon Evils are extremely Yin and cold. The Iron Sand Palm, however, is a Yang Martial Art, making them natural adversaries. Yin and Yang naturally counteract each other, but if the Yin energy is too strong, it can extinguish Yang energy. Similarly, if the Yang energy is too overpowering, it can easily obliterate Yin energy. The measure of suppression between them fundamentally depends on which is stronger or weaker. Just as Demon Evils, being Yin in nature, are not afraid of sunlight. The sunlight, though also a form of Yang energy, is simply not intense enough and has no effect on Demon Evils with strong Yin energy. A typical Great Achievement of the Iron Sand Palm probably wouldn’t have much suppressive effect on Demon Evils, but when combined with the Heavenly Martial Gang Qi, it’s a completely different story.

Shen Changqing looked at his hands, feeling very satisfied. His Iron Sand Palm had reached Great Achievement. His strength had ascended to a new level. With this, the number of people who could contend with him in the Innate Realm had once again dwindled.

It’s a pity—

Even with the Iron Sand Palm at Great Achievement, I haven’t been able to comprehend the Martial Dao True Intent; otherwise, I might already be a warrior at the Grandmaster Realm!

Aside from his joy, Shen Changqing also felt a trace of regret. Even now, he still hadn’t grasped what the Martial Dao True Intent truly was. It was said that when Martial Arts reach a profound level, one can comprehend the Martial Dao True Intent. Yet, despite his Iron Sand Palm having achieved complete Perfection, no so-called Martial Dao True Intent had emerged.

For a moment, Shen Changqing’s curiosity about the Martial Dao True Intent only deepened.

If there’s a chance, I can seek advice from those Martial Arts Grandmasters, but currently, I’m not acquainted with any of the Earth Rank Demon Hunters.

Since arriving at the Demon-Subduing Division, he had been focusing solely on cultivating in his residence. Other than those who had arrived with him at the beginning, he had few real acquaintances. Much time had passed. Most of the people he was familiar with initially had died on their missions. Very few had managed to advance, and none had become Martial Arts Grandmasters. Let alone Martial Arts Grandmasters, there wasn’t even a single one in the Innate Realm.

The first person Shen Changqing thought of was Zhou Yuanzheng, whom he had met before. But after considering it, he decided to abandon the idea of asking for advice.

The main reason? He wasn’t familiar with Zhou Yuanzheng. To put it plainly, he was just a lowly Yellow Rank Demon Hunter while Zhou Yuanzheng was a Defender Envoy; the difference between their ranks was substantial. Forget about meeting; Shen Changqing guessed that he would be stopped as soon as he approached the Council Hall.

The Iron Sand Palm at Great Achievement can be considered a strong Martial Art. If it could merge with another palm technique, it would surely become even more powerful.

Also, merging a fully perfected Iron Sand Palm with a Martial Art that is not yet initiated will primarily follow the direction of the Iron Sand Palm.

In doing so—I won’t have to worry about the fire poison of the Iron Sand Palm disappearing during the fusion.

The fusion of two Martial Arts had made him realize that fusion only made them stronger.

However, after fusing the Hundred Battles Blade Technique, Shen Changqing no longer had the desire to fuse again soon. It’s simple. For Martial Arts, it’s not a case of the higher the rank, the better. Consider the Hundred Battles Blade Technique, which can’t be improved with Slaughter Value. The more advanced a fusion is, the slower subsequent improvements will be. If Martial Arts can’t be turned into one’s own strength, then no matter how profound they are, they’re useless.

Therefore, unless I totally master the Hundred Battles Blade Technique, I won’t consider merging with another blade technique any time soon. The same applies to the Snare Trampling Gang Step. And the higher the initial rank of the Martial Art before fusion, the higher the starting point of the fused Martial Art will be.

As for the Invincible Golden Body, after some thought, Shen Changqing also temporarily decided against merging this Martial Art for the time being. One reason was that the Invincible Golden Body had not yet reached Perfection. Fusing it now for an upgrade would consume Slaughter Value, and the resulting increase in strength might not be cost-effective. Secondly, merging the Invincible Golden Body to the next level would undoubtedly consume more Slaughter Value, a requirement his current Slaughter Value could not satisfy.

After much deliberation, the only suitable candidate he saw for fusion at the moment was the fully perfected Iron Sand Palm.

Having made his decision, Shen Changqing left the small courtyard he hadn’t stepped out of for several months and headed toward the Scripture Pavilion. He showed his Identity Token and smoothly entered. Upon entering the Scripture Pavilion, he headed straight for the second floor. After spending some time there, when Shen Changqing emerged from the Scripture Pavilion, he had acquired an additional Martial Art: Mountain Splitting Palm Technique!

Compared to the Iron Sand Palm, the growth potential of this technique was somewhat higher. However, it was geared more towards dealing with ordinary Martial Artists. It didn’t possess an ability like the Iron Sand Palm, which could congeal fire poison and inflict a certain level of damage on Demon Evils after reaching Great Achievement.

Having acquired a new Martial Art, Shen Changqing had no intention to start cultivating it but instead continued to concentrate on studying the Hundred Battles Blade Technique and the Snare Trampling Gang Step.