Chapter 43: Innate Skill

Chapter 43: "Innate Skill"

Old Yue felt somewhat embarrassed when Ning Zhongze exposed his thoughts. Qu Feiyan, usually clever and mischievous, had merely lost her composure in a moment of urgency. Hearing this beautiful mistress speak, she immediately understood, breaking into a smile through her tears. "So that's how it is. I thought Brother Zheng Jian was really going to be punished."

Zheng Jian gently patted Qu Feiyan's head and laughed, "Since Mistress has spoken, shouldn't you hurry and pay your respects?"

Qu Feiyan was about to kneel, but Mistress Ning Zhongze smiled, "No rush! Senior brother, I truly like this little girl. Why don't I take her as my disciple? She's still young, so let her rank below Pingzhi. What do you think?"

Old Yue had no objections. With his wife making the request, what reason could he have to refuse? He nodded in agreement.

Qu Feiyan also liked her gentle and beautiful mistress very much. She immediately knelt and said, "Disciple Qu Feiyan pays respects to Master! I will obey the rules of the sect and never dare to violate them."

Ning Zhongze was exceedingly fond of her. Hearing this, she smiled and helped Qu Feiyan up. "Good, good! Feiyan, though you joined the sect last, you are my only disciple. Remember to practice diligently. No slacking!"

Qu Feiyan had never received such attentive care before, and she was overjoyed. All the nervousness and anxiety she had felt since arriving vanished completely.

...

After returning, Zheng Jian barely paused before heading up to the Cliff of Reflection. Standing before the bare cliff face, he was full of emotion.

For so many years, Zheng Jian had not been diligent in his training, relying on his external aid to gradually rise among the experts. Yet what pleased him most was having successfully altered the course of the story.

Old Yue would not turn evil. Lin Pingzhi had successfully joined Huashan, and unlike the original tale where he was manipulated by Old Yue, now he would certainly not tread the same dark path.

The Handwashing Ceremony had ended smoothly, and poor Qu Feiyan had been saved.

Looking at things now, everything at Huashan was moving in a positive direction. He was quite satisfied.

"It's been a while since I checked the system's earnings..." With nothing else to do, Zheng Jian thought of the system. The events surrounding the Handwashing Ceremony had earned him a considerable amount of resentment points.

Over the past three years, he had accumulated quite a bit, yet spent much as well, so not much remained. But over this recent period, upon checking the system, Zheng Jian saw his resentment point balance had returned to over two thousand.

Happiness! ヽ(=^w^=)丿

Zheng Jian glanced at the items in the exchange shop. Most were strange and useless, not piquing his interest, so he navigated to the system's lottery page.

He hadn't tried the lottery for a long time, having previously spent his limited resentment points to exchange for and master his three main martial arts.

The wheel remained the same, but the cost for a single draw had risen to 520 resentment points.

"That's expensive!"

Zheng Jian clicked his tongue. He knew the system's wheel included the "Thank you for participating" option, which meant if luck failed, over five hundred points could be wasted.

He hesitated for a moment, but couldn't resist the urge to gamble. "Anyway, I've got plenty of resentment points now, and nothing worth exchanging. Why not give it a try?"

Once this thought appeared, it grew wildly in his mind. Remembering the "Comprehension +1" attribute he once drew, Zheng Jian felt an itch in his heart.

Excited and trembling, he pressed the start button.

The wheel began spinning, faster and faster, its contents impossible to discern.

After silently praying to all the gods, Zheng Jian shouted in his heart, "Stop!"

The wheel slowed, then gradually halted.

With a hopeful heart, Zheng Jian fixed his gaze.

"Innate Skill."

ヾ(≧o≦)〃 Ah~ Zheng Jian could not contain his joy.

Some may not know "Innate Skill"—it is the exclusive art of Master Chongyang, the greatest expert of the world of Eagle Shooting Heroes, a supreme Taoist internal cultivation method.

Huashan's founder, Guangningzi Hao Datong, was one of the Seven Masters of Quanzhen under Master Chongyang, yet even he never received the transmission of "Innate Skill." The current "Purple Mist Skill" passed down is also a legitimate Taoist method. Zheng Jian had been worrying about what to do after mastering "Purple Mist Skill," but now, a single draw had granted him "Innate Skill"!

Even without cultivating it yet, Zheng Jian was certain that "Innate Skill" would become his main advanced method, without any side effects.

"My goodness! Looks like my luck has been building up lately—I'm on a roll!" Zheng Jian was both shocked and delighted. He had expected only an attribute like "Comprehension +1," but the system had given him a huge surprise, directly solving his martial arts advancement dilemma.

"System, you're incredible!"

Zheng Jian sincerely praised, and after clicking to claim, a burst of light bloomed in his mind. Countless profound mental techniques flowed into him, automatically memorized without any effort or risk of forgetting, perfectly flawless.

After carefully reviewing the "Innate Skill," Zheng Jian found it truly allowed him to break through his limits.

In the world of Eagle Shooting Heroes, it is commonly believed that Master Chongyang's dominance over the other four greats was due to having surpassed the limit of peerless experts, attaining the innate level—a feat attributed to his mastery of "Innate Skill."

Now, Zheng Jian realized that once he mastered "Innate Skill," he could break through to the innate master level.

What is the innate? Opening the Ren and Du meridians, connecting the dual bridges of Heaven and Earth, with outer energy absent and inner breath self-generating—endlessly, greatly enhancing the endurance in battle. While one may not defeat ten thousand with one, one can certainly survive among ten thousand troops, even take the head of a general amidst an army!

Such is the innate master!

One who has transcended the limits of ordinary martial artists, reaching a new realm!

"System, if I want to instantly achieve mastery in 'Innate Skill,' how many resentment points will it cost?" Zheng Jian asked hopefully. Having tasted the sweetness of instant mastery, he had no interest in gradual cultivation.

Resentment System: "Please check the exchange shop yourself." If you want a shortcut, keep refreshing the shop for the condition; once it appears, you'll be able to exchange.

Zheng Jian: "…(╯#-_-)╯┴—┴┴—┴"

Refreshing the exchange shop cost a hefty amount of resentment points. He had avoided refreshing by choosing to try his luck, yet things turned out the same…

Looking at his remaining fifteen hundred resentment points, Zheng Jian gritted his teeth, switched back to the exchange shop, and clicked refresh.

One refresh, two hundred resentment points!

So black, truly black!

...

(End of chapter)