Half a month later, all thirty "geniuses" of this martial arts examination cohort had arrived at the Seeking Immortal Institute, where a special tutor was assigned to uniformly teach the "Bone Forging" technique, and elixirs were prepared based on each person's innate talent and constitution.
"The difficulty truly skyrocketed!" A month later, Li Ji'an was fully devoted, almost to the point of losing himself. As expected, the "Bone Forging" realm was far more challenging than "Skin Polishing" and "Solid Flesh," incomparable in terms of difficulty.
Not only were there 206 routes for the circulation of vital energy in the "Bone Forging" technique, but both the sequence and dosage had to be flawless.
Even though the vital energy he cultivated using the "Golden Strength Skill" was more than sufficient for the first two realms, it only needed time to nourish and cleanse.
However, for the Bone Forging realm, the vital energy he cultivated with the "Golden Strength Skill" alone was not enough to nourish and stimulate the bones. The energy cultivated in a day could only nourish the bones for three grand circulations... At this rate, even ten years might not be enough to achieve success in Bone Forging!
"Both comprehension and innate talent are indispensable! But my innate talent is lacking; if I had the Dragon and Tiger Aspect, perhaps the cultivated vital energy would at least be enough for five grand circulations."
"Do your best! With external supplements, the time should be halved."
Having recognized the reality, Li Ji'an was not discouraged at all.
After all, there were external supplements; not only did the Martial Arts Academy provide the necessary elixir supplements, but he also had a sum of six thousand taels of silver to support more advanced supplementary medicine.
Worst case scenario, even if he couldn't become an Immortal Seedling in this life, he would accumulate experience and lay the foundation for the next life.
"Junior Brother, come and try some, my mother sent me new desserts again." Just as he finished his training, Ning Yutan offered him a plate of exquisite pastries.
Li Ji'an smiled slightly; he had decisively refused the two girls from becoming competitors that day.
However, it seemed that this had instead sparked a competitive spirit in them.
These days, Ning Yutan was increasingly forward.
Even Ning Sujin had slightly let go of her reserve.
"Li Ji'an, I've pretty much grasped the Bone Forging technique. If there's anything you don't understand, you can ask me."
To this, Li Ji'an just let nature take its course.
Time will tell one's strengths and the depth of a relationship, so long as he remained true to himself, straightforward and honest without malice or deception, it wouldn't become enmity.
"Miss, I appreciate your kindness, but I feel my vital energy is insufficient. I hired someone to buy some mythical beast meat to supplement it; it should arrive soon, so I won't be tempted."
"Eldest Miss, to be honest, I've completely understood the two hundred and six routes of the Bone Forging technique two days ago."
Li Ji'an replied one by one.
During this time, the identity of the two girls had already spread in the Martial Arts Academy, and everyone addressed them as such.
"Mythical beast meat!" Ning Yutan's mouth instantly shaped into an 'O'.
To bring Li Ji'an over to her side, she had investigated him—an orphan from a small county's Daoist temple.
Mythical beast meat is rare and expensive, costing at least a hundred taels of silver, especially when maximizing its effect on vital energy, which requires drinking its blood and eating its flesh raw... Just thinking about the bloody and wild scene made her shiver.
In the presence of pill medicine, it's rare for apprentices to also nourish themselves with mythical beast meat.
In an instant, her perception of Li Ji'an was refreshed once more.
"Such strong comprehension? No wonder his innate talent isn't as good as mine, yet he managed to be the second in the martial arts examination." Ning Sujin's eyes widened in disbelief at Li Ji'an.
She has had good comprehension since childhood, pursuing martial arts closely behind Ning Yutan, who had better innate talent and taken the Bone Marrow Cleansing Pill. Yet, in front of Li Ji'an, she lost completely.
In an instant, her perception of Li Ji'an shifted from mere rivalry with Ning Yutan to something subtly different.
A young girl's admiration for strength is natural.
Upon closer look, she notices that apart from Li Ji'an's tall stature and handsome face, he possesses a different temperament, calm and indifferent, which is quite endearing.
At the same time, Li Ji'an couldn't help but marvel at Ning Sujin's comprehension talent, which was not much inferior to his own, accumulated over four lifetimes.
After finishing a day of cultivation, Li Ji'an returned to his courtyard, where he saw Xiao Wu from afar, carrying a Purple Gold Mink.
The Purple Gold Mink, a Tier One treasure beast, specifically supplements vital energy. Not only is it priced at 200 taels of silver, but it's generally hard to come by. Fortunately, Xiao Wu's status as a Chief Constable allowed Li Ji'an to entrust him with purchasing it.
Ning Yutan saw from afar and quickly followed. Although invited by Li Ji'an, she dared only to peek in from the door until she saw him actually eat its flesh raw and drink its blood raw. Covering her eyes and mouth, she eventually fled in a panic with her heart racing.
—Wild, fierce, with an unwavering determination to seek immortality!
Dangerous yet it sparked her curiosity and awe.
"The effect is indeed good, but... my current physique can hardly handle it; a supplement every three months is the limit." Feeling the agitator within him, Li Ji'an was slightly disappointed.
...
In the days that followed, the two girls' attitudes toward him changed subtly. The one constant was their overt and covert competition, which even intensified.
Two years quietly passed by with Li Ji'an's relentless efforts and the girls' rivalry.
"Brother Li, I've completed Bone Forging to perfection and can begin the blood exchange process!"
On this day, Ning Yutan arrived with excitement, immediately reporting her success to Li Ji'an.
Li Ji'an was secretly astonished; over the past two years, despite his unceasing efforts, the supplement of elixirs, and mythical beast meat, he had only managed to complete seventy percent of Bone Forging. By conservative estimates, perfection would still take a year and a half.
"A true prodigy!"
"Huh? I'm not a monster, Brother Li, say something nice." Ning Yutan playfully blinked her eyes.
Despite being two years older, about to turn seventeen, Ning Yutan became even more mischievous before Li Ji'an, often acting cute.
"A genius! A peerless genius!" Li Ji'an corrected himself.
"Hee-hee, Brother Li is flattering me, compared to the real geniuses in the Imperial City, I'm still lacking. My father said someone last year completed Bone Forging in just one year." As she spoke, her head had already turned towards Ning Sujin on the side, and her voice abruptly increased a few notches.
"Pa! Not practicing anymore, where did that fly come from?" Ning Sujin kicked the stone grinder in front of her over and turned to leave, clearly agitated.
Her Bone Forging progress was slightly ahead of Li Ji'an's, at about eighty percent. It was estimated to take another year to achieve perfection.
"Jealous! Brother Li, she's jealous of me." Ning Yutan complained to Li Ji'an with a face full of grievance yet secretly joyful.
Li Ji'an remained unchanged, shook his head with a smile, and turned away, never getting involved in their rivalry.
Returning to his courtyard, a servant delivered two letters.
"Senior Brother's letters are coming more frequently." As people age, they become more nostalgic. Liu Deshan used to write once every six months, now it's once every three months.
The concern in the letters was undiminished and added a few nagging words.
In the previous life, Liu Deshan was five years older than Li Ji'an, and he was now fifty-four, which in this world was considered aging.
Coupled with his obesity and lack of martial arts practice for physical strengthening, living to sixty was uncertain.
In contrast, Qingyun's letter was perfunctory, disjointed, most likely written under Liu Deshan's insistence.
A youth of seventeen or eighteen is full of vigor, exploring the world and can't yet comprehend separation or cherish longing, especially a careless character like Qingyun.
After responding with heartfelt sincerity to his Senior Brother, he couldn't be bothered to waste ink on Qingyun, and simply sent him the "Dragon-locking Secret Technique" manuscript that Xiao Wu had passed to him.
This was something Li Ji'an chanced upon in his previous life, which involved repeatedly channeling vital energy to the Huiyin Acupoint and guarding the essence, beneficial in nurturing Primordial Yang and preserving vitality. Even for someone without cultivated vital energy, it could provide some benefits.
In the previous life, he had passed it on to Xiao Wu, and in this life, that kid quietly returned it to him.