The Gu clan's Scripture Pavilion was located on the eastern side of the manor, a freestanding three-story wooden building.
When Gu Yanqing pushed the door open and stepped inside, the old servant guarding the pavilion was dozing by the entrance, merely lifting his eyelids at the sound of footsteps before letting them drop closed again.
In over a decade, the original host had entered this place barely a handful of times; the old servant likely assumed he was just here to slack off again.
He wove through the densely packed bookshelves, his fingers brushing past row upon row of technique jade slips.
Some were caked in dust, others yellowed with age; many were merely low-grade basic techniques placed here to fill out the shelves.
After searching for nearly half a shichen, he finally uncovered two old books buried at the very bottom of a stack in a corner on the second floor.
A thin layer of fine dust coated their covers, yet the writing remained legible.
One was titled 《Black Iron Body》, and the other 《Nine Revolutions Body Tempering Technique》, both Mystic Middle-Grade.
He flipped open the preface of 《Nine Revolutions Body Tempering Technique》 and skimmed a few lines, gaining a general understanding of what both techniques were for.
They were neither for swordsmanship nor for spellcraft, but for body cultivation.
They tempered the physical body with spiritual energy, strengthening muscle, bone, and skin. Once mastered, physical defense would increase dramatically, and the force behind every punch and kick would vastly surpass that of cultivators at the same realm.
According to the text, achieving minor mastery in body tempering would allow one to withstand the sword qi of a Foundation Establishment cultivator without breaking skin, while great mastery meant a single punch could shatter the bones of a demon beast of equal rank.
Mystic Middle-Grade was by no means the pinnacle of cultivation methods, but it was certainly not low. In any sect, it was well worthy of being allocated to core disciples.
Yet techniques of this grade were tossed into a corner of the Scripture Pavilion to gather dust?
With a moment's thought, he understood.
The cultivation circles of Canglan City placed paramount importance on cultivation realms, spellcraft, and sword arts.
Body cultivation—an arduous, exhausting path devoid of elegance—was viewed by the scions of noble clans as vulgar grunt work.
Swinging a sword or chanting incantations during combat was the hallmark of an expert; brawling fist-to-fist was the domain of crude brutes.
The original host, an arrogant and conceited playboy who couldn't even be bothered to practice basic swordsmanship, would certainly never deign to flip through dusty body cultivation manuals.
Gu Yanqing closed the book.
He, however, had no such qualms; he had never intended to play the part of some refined gentleman of the cultivation world.
Staying alive was far more important than looking graceful. Moreover, these two manuals happened to patch his shortcomings.
The 《Roaming Cloud Technique》 excelled at footwork and catching enemies off guard, but if he were exposed and forced into close quarters, his rudimentary swordplay wouldn't hold up at all.
Body cultivation techniques bolstered defense and toe-to-toe brawling, complementing the agile skirmishing of the 《Roaming Cloud Technique》 perfectly.
With readily available Mystic Middle-Grade manuals sitting right here, it would be a shame to let them go to waste.
Balanced development—try everything that makes one stronger. After all, one could never have too many skills.
Tucking the books away, he headed downstairs.
...
When Lin Zhixue returned home, the sky was still bright.
She planned to meditate and complete a few circulation cycles before dinner, putting the Spirit Gathering Powder she had bought at the market today to use.
Xiaoyu floated beside her, engrossed in examining the few spirit herbs she had just purchased.
It muttered under its breath about how this stalk was rich in spiritual energy, that one was mediocre, and how the shopkeeper had definitely slipped inferior goods into the corner of the bundle.
Just as she entered the courtyard, two figures darted out from the main hall, barring her path.
A boy and a girl, both appearing around twelve or thirteen years old.
The boy was tall and thin, dressed in brand-new silk robes, with his chin tilted slightly upward.
The girl wore her hair in twin buns and was dressed in a pink skirt. Holding a handful of melon seeds, she cracked them between her teeth while looking Lin Zhixue up and down.
Madam Zhou's children: Lin Mingxuan and Lin Mingzhu.
“Hey.”
Lin Mingzhu spoke first, her tone dripping with natural arrogance.
“I want osmanthus cake from East Street. Go buy some for me.”
Lin Mingxuan chimed in from the side, “Hurry up and don't dawdle. When you get back, I'll give you a spirit stone.”
He raised his index finger in a gesture of 'one,' his expression as if he were bestowing immense charity.
Xiaoyu drifted out from the jade pendant, hovering beside Lin Zhixue's shoulder. Glaring at the two brats before them with emerald eyes, its voice pitched up several degrees.
“Who are these little brats? How can they be so rude? Who do they think they're ordering around? And 'a spirit stone'? Quite the mouth on him!”
Lin Zhixue stood motionless.
Gazing at the two self-righteous faces before her, she remained silent for a long moment.
In the past, this had indeed been the way of things.
Spoiled by Madam Zhou from an early age, these two children treated ordering her around for errands as routine.
She would go to East Street to buy them pastries or West Street to fetch their clothes. If she was slow, she was scolded; if she was fast, they would toss her a single spirit stone to dismiss her like a beggar.
Yet she had endured it, because back then, even a single spirit stone counted as a spirit stone.
She did not lack stamina; what she lacked was any resource that could propel her forward.
“Hey, didn't you hear me, older sister?”
Seeing her stand still for so long, Lin Mingzhu frowned in annoyance, her hand pausing mid-crack.
“Do you think one spirit stone is too little? Giving you one is already more than generous—it's just buying a few cakes.”
“I'm not going.”
Lin Zhixue cut her off flatly.
Offering neither explanation nor excuse, she simply sidestepped the two and walked toward her room.
Lin Mingxuan and Lin Mingzhu froze in place, clearly not expecting that she, who had always been meek and submissive, would just throw three words at them and leave.
Lin Mingzhu didn't even notice the melon seed shell slipping from her fingers onto her skirt. By the time she came to her senses and wanted to chase after her to say more, Lin Zhixue had already pushed her door open and pulled it shut behind her.
Xiaoyu drifted right through the door and landed on the table before her, crossing its arms with a face full of confusion and indignation.
“Those are your younger brother and sister, Zhixue? Isn't that a bit too arrogant? Ordering you around like an errand girl while acting like they're doing you a favor?”
“Who treats people like that?”
Lin Zhixue sat at the edge of the bed and unpacked the spiritual materials from her storage bag one by one, arranging them on the table as she spoke.
Their branch of the Lin family was a collateral line; when her grandfather was alive, the main clan still allocated a portion of resources to them.
After her grandfather passed away and her father failed to reach Foundation Establishment, their branch's standing in the family plummeted.
The spirit stones and cultivation techniques distributed by the clan were hoarded for the two younger ones, leaving her with nothing but meager scraps.
In the past, her cultivation had been low, and without any other way to earn spirit stones, she had no choice but to obey them.
Running an errand yielded one spirit stone; even after saving for three months, she couldn't amass more than a few, but it was still better than nothing.
Upon hearing this, Xiaoyu's entire spirit body flared brighter.
It bounced into the air, its voice spiking drastically as words poured out in rapid fire.
“How could they do that?! That's bullying, plain and simple! Those two little brats have more spirit stones than they can spend, while you get cornered in alleys by thugs stealing yours, and when you come home, you still have to let them boss you around!”
“By what right? Just because they were born from the stepmother? That's completely unfair—I'm so mad I could explode!”
After cursing Madam Zhou, it cursed the two brats, and after cursing the brats, it began to ache for Lin Zhixue, floating back and forth in midair until its golden hair practically bristled.
Watching it puff up with indignation, the corners of Lin Zhixue's lips curled slightly upward.
No one had ever gotten so worked up on her behalf; this was the first time she had ever experienced such a feeling.
It was novel, yet far from unpleasant.
“I'm used to it.”
“No way!” Xiaoyu floated back in front of her, its little face pulled into utmost seriousness.
“You're not allowed to spoil them anymore! And giving you a single spirit stone? That's outrageously stingy!”
“You know what? Even though I don't remember my past, I just know that you shouldn't be treated like this, Zhixue. Expecting to boss you around for a single spirit stone? Not a chance!”
Lin Zhixue lowered her head and packed the final spirit herb into her storage bag, offering no reply.
In the past, she had no choice; when she lacked spirit stones, even one was precious.
Now, things were different.
The work at the Gu manor gave her a steady source of spirit stones, and Xiaoyu's presence had elevated her cultivation efficiency far beyond what it once was. She no longer needed to run errands to earn spirit stones.
Even without spirit stones from those two siblings, she could still cultivate, still grow stronger, and still receive the remuneration she deserved from Gu Yanqing.
Putting her storage bag away, she sat cross-legged on the bed.
She hadn't yet used the Spirit Gathering Powder she bought today, so running a circulation cycle before dinner was the perfect opportunity.
Seeing her begin her cultivation, Xiaoyu conscientiously slipped back into the jade pendant.
The ambient spiritual energy gathered slowly, denser than usual, as if corralled around her by a pair of invisible hands.
Lin Zhixue closed her eyes, sensing her mind settle into calm much faster than usual.
The spiritual energy flowed smoothly through her meridians without the slightest obstruction.
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