nashuaworldcup Chapter 20 Observing All Dharmas
Chapter 20 Observing All Dharmas
"Nine-Turn Cotton Palm?"
Li Lan smiled and looked at Yue Ran.
"Yes, that day when Gu Changfeng and I were sparring, you, you..."
She wanted to say, "Young master, you're holding my waist," but she was too embarrassed to say it aloud.
"I'm holding you, aren't I?"
Li Lan said it directly, and Yue Ran blushed immediately, but still nodded.
"Try it, do I have the pulse of a martial artist?"
Li Lan smiled and reached out her hand.
Yue Ran hesitated for a moment, but still placed her slender fingers on Li Lan's wrist, but she immediately showed a look of disappointment.
Li Lan's pulse was just like that of an ordinary person, not at all like that of a martial artist, which was strong, powerful, and rhythmic.
In fact, this is precisely the power of the panel. Li Lan's martial arts cultivation, which he obtained by infusing spiritual energy, can be directly hidden, making it very difficult for others to detect!
The reason why Wei Lilan hid was because maintaining a reputation as a "good-for-nothing" was very beneficial to him.
Because when someone is looked down upon, they have often already gained some kind of advantage!
Especially now that the Lin family is in grave danger, it is the best strategy to keep others from knowing our true strength.
"Come on, take me to the armory!"
Li Lan took the opportunity to put his arm around her slender waist and stood up.
Yue Ran's delicate body trembled slightly, but thinking of her son-in-law's weakness after his illness, she dared not dodge. She could only let him hold her and support her, saying, "Young master, what are you doing at the armory?"
"The Nine-Turn Cotton Palm is a martial art suitable for a little genius like you. I can't learn it. I'll go find something simpler to practice!"
Yue Ran said, "Young Master, there are no simple martial arts techniques in the General's armory! You should focus on reviewing your studies and not waste time. From now on, Yue Ran will protect you and won't leave you again. You don't need to worry about being ambushed anymore..."
Seeing how serious she was, Li Lan couldn't help but gently pinch her nose and said, "Even if you can't master it, it'll still be good for your health. Otherwise, when I go to a brothel, my legs will be weak and I'll be mocked by the courtesans for being useless. How embarrassing, haha..."
"Young master, you're talking nonsense again."
Yue Ran wasn't angry because she knew that Li Lan wasn't a lecherous person at all, and that he remained chaste even in the brothel.
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but feel sorry for Li Lan; he was so devoted, yet her mistress didn't like him at all...
"Young master, let me help you over there."
She supported Li Lan, and Li Lan's right hand naturally came into her arms. Feeling the girl's heartbeat and special tenderness, Li Lan felt a surge of tenderness.
……
Before long, they arrived at the Lin family's armory.
The two pushed the door open and entered as if no one was guarding them.
But Li Lan knew that it was because Lin Zheng had given permission; otherwise, anyone else who tried to approach would have been killed by the guards in secret.
"Two first-class?"
Since entering the Transcendent Realm, Li Lan's senses have far surpassed those of ordinary people. He heard two faint breathing sounds, which must be those of first-class martial artists!
The Lin residence was indeed more heavily guarded than Li Lan had imagined.
The Lin family's armory wasn't large; it consisted of three interconnected rooms. The first room was filled with all sorts of weapons, including swords, spears, halberds, and even rare and unusual weapons like judge's pens and silver needles—all of them top-grade!
The second room contains martial arts manuals from various schools and sects collected by Lin Zheng.
The third room, however, had a locked iron door that could not be opened, and its contents remained a mystery.
Li Lan browsed through the first room, then entered the second room to begin selecting martial arts techniques.
"The Mighty Vajra Palm," a top-tier martial art, characterized by its powerful and fierce palm techniques...
"Orchid Finger Technique," a top-tier martial art, characterized by its swift and agile finger techniques...
"Xuan Yang Gong" is a first-rate internal cultivation method, and is an incomplete version of "Tai Chi Xuan Yang Gong"...
……
Those who can enter Lin Zheng's Armory are basically all top-tier!
The top-tier ones are extremely rare, with only two available: one is "Blood Fiend Technique," which is cultivated with killing intent, and the other is "Eight-Armed Mountain Technique," which focuses on physical training.
"Young master, you only need to pick one book. How long will it take to read this many?"
When Yue Ran saw Li Lan sit down and flip through one book after another, she couldn't help but laugh. In the art of martial arts, one must specialize in one area, but judging from Li Lan's posture, he seemed to want to learn everything.
"Just read them for fun. Wouldn't it be better to read them all once, understand them thoroughly, and then read them all?"
Li Lan smiled.
Yue Ran didn't say anything more, she just stood to the side, holding a lamp for Li Lan, trying her best to get closer so as not to hurt Li Lan's eyes.
……
a few days later.
Li Lan read through all the martial arts manuals in the armory, and finally selected two!
The first book is "Xuan Yang Gong," a mental cultivation method for internal energy. Now that the Nine Revolutions Cotton Palm is no longer useful for Li Lan's realm improvement, a more advanced mental cultivation method is a must.
The second book is "Illusory Cloud Needle Technique," which is an external martial art specializing in silver needle concealed weapons.
"The Xuan Yang Gong requires a great deal of spiritual energy..."
Without hesitation, Li Lan decided to first practice the Illusionary Cloud Needle Technique!
After the spiritual infusion, his panel changed shortly afterward:
Name: Li Lan
Realm: Inner Breath Level 1 (First-rate Martial Artist)
Cultivation Techniques: Xuan Yang Gong (not yet learned), Huan Yun Needle Technique (minor success), Nine Turns Cotton Palm (perfect), True Dragon Technique (3/1000)
Spirituality: 20
He habitually keeps 20 points as a backup!
After all, there is no more Qingyun Brew in the Lin family mansion now, so he has no source of spiritual energy.
Thinking about this, he couldn't help but feel worried.
Although Zuiyuelou is one channel, it is still too limited.
We are still at the mercy of others!
He now possesses so many martial arts skills, yet he is unable to cultivate them, which truly worries him!
We need to find a way to get those spirit wines or spirit medicines!
"Don't worry, son-in-law. This Illusionary Cloud Needle Technique is very difficult to master. An ordinary person might not even be able to get the basics down in eight or ten years. Don't feel sorry for yourself. I'll find you a simple way to strengthen your body later, and I'll make sure you can show off your prowess in the brothel. No one will dare to laugh at you..."
Yue Ran thought Li Lan was worried about practicing martial arts, so she smiled and comforted Li Lan. She and Li Lan were becoming more and more casual and intimate when they chatted, and she even started to make some jokes.
"Fine, you dare laugh at me."
Li Lan deliberately said fiercely, "I'll make sure you get a good stab tonight without needing a needle!"
He waved the silver needles in his hand. These were taken from the first room. There were thirteen of them in total, made of a mixture of snow silver and gold, and each one finger long!
Since he had obtained Lin Zheng's permission to take the set of silver needles, naturally no one said anything.
"Young master, the master wants to see you."
At this moment, Tie Poshan arrived.
Li Lan immediately put away the silver needles and went to the Lin family's council hall with Yue Ran.
"Ruoxue, Li Lan, the civil service exam will be held in half a month, followed by the Qingtian Grand Ceremony."
"The Qingtian Grand Ceremony is extremely important. The palace has already issued a decree that all officials of the seventh rank and above must prepare congratulatory gifts. According to their rank, the first-rank Dayuan official must prepare two catties of Qingyun Fruit."
Lin Zheng sighed and said, "This matter cannot be taken lightly. We must make proper preparations so that the officials in the court will not say that our Lin family is disrespectful to the Emperor. I will entrust this matter to the two of you."
He originally wanted Lin Ruoxue to do this herself, but after thinking it over, he realized that Lin Ruoxue was lacking in these areas, so it would be more prudent to have Li Lan help her.
Moreover, he also had a plan: to let Li Lan and Lin Ruoxue spend more time together, hoping that they would develop feelings for each other over time, and that Lin Ruoxue would eventually change her opinion of Li Lan.
"Two catties of Qingyun fruit? Isn't that a bit too much?"
Lin Ruobing frowned slightly.
Even Li Lan was surprised. He now knew how precious the Azure Cloud Fruit was, and only a small amount was sent to the capital each year. Now the court was demanding that all the civil and military officials pay tribute.
"His Majesty attaches great importance to this Qingtian Ceremony; this is an imperial edict he personally issued."
Lin Zheng said calmly, his face revealing neither joy nor anger:
"Although the Azure Cloud Fruit is precious, it can always be bought, but it will cost a lot of money... You can take care of the liquidation and fundraising of the Lin family's properties yourselves. I will not concern myself with this matter."
Lin Zheng waved his hand.
Li Lan and Lin Ruobing then withdrew.
Lin Ruobing immediately summoned Xu Youshan, the manager in charge of Lin's businesses.
Lin Zheng, as a general who protects the country, does not run any businesses, but his wife, Xu Yanrong, originally came from a wealthy merchant family, and she brought the Xu family's cloth business to the Lin family.
Xu Youshan was Lin Ruobing's maternal uncle. He wore a wide robe and had a very kind appearance. He said, "Ruoxue, did you come to me to raise money to buy Qingyun Fruit?"
Lin Ruobing nodded and said, "Yes, Uncle, the price of Qingyun Fruit is very high, and the demand is probably huge. I wonder how much silver our Lin family's cloth shop can withdraw from its accounts?"
Xu Youshan sighed and said, "The cloth shop has not been doing well in recent years. Many mulberry farmers in the south have been displaced, and the court has many taxes to pay. I'm afraid we can only come up with three thousand taels at most."
Three thousand taels!
This is a huge sum of money for an ordinary family, but Lin Ruobing frowned and said:
"The price of Qingyun fruit... is about three thousand taels per catty."
"more than!"
Li Lan, standing nearby, spoke up: "The price of three thousand taels was before. Now that His Majesty has issued an imperial decree, all the civil and military officials are anxious, and the price of Qingyun Fruit will inevitably rise!"
To actually buy two catties of Qingyun fruit at this critical juncture, it might cost tens of thousands of taels of silver.
Upon hearing this, Xu Youshan looked at Li Lan with slight surprise. This son-in-law... does have some brains.
Hearing him say that, Lin Ruobing became even more worried. She didn't have enough money... how was she going to buy Qingyun Fruit?
Li Lan then asked, "Uncle, as far as I know, Lin's Cloth Shop has opened more than a dozen branches in the capital over the years. Lin's controls one-third of the market share in the capital. Why is there only three thousand taels of silver in the account?"
He glanced at Xu Youshan indifferently, his gaze lingering on Xu Youshan's hands and waist.
The jade thumb ring on Xu Youshan's hand was of excellent quality, and his belt was also inlaid with jade. These two items alone were worth no less than five hundred taels of silver!
Even Lin Zheng himself, and even his wife Xu Yanrong, rarely possessed such ornaments!
Xu Youshan was just managing Lin's property and working as the manager of the cloth shop. His monthly salary was only twenty taels of silver. How could he wear such valuable items?
Moreover, this person was clearly used to luxury, so even though he knew that Lin was asking him for money today, he didn't care and still wore it casually on his body!
Considering the scale of Lin's Cloth Shop's business, how could it only have three thousand taels of silver in its accounts? This is clearly not right!
Xu Youshan was taken aback for a moment, then his face immediately turned cold. He said, "Young Master Li Lan, are you questioning the accounts of our cloth shop?"
……