Chapter 139: Water and Fire
Chapter 139: Water and Fire
Behind the ancient courtyard, a row of simple-looking cottages stood.
Chen Mu stood there, gazing inside, and noticed that each cottage was not particularly large. In the largest one at the center, about seven or eight people sat cross-legged in various spots, and among them was Xu Hongyu.
The entire cottage, and even the whole courtyard, was enveloped in silence.
Chen Mu approached quietly and peered inside. Aside from Xu Hongyu, he saw people of different ages and genders, all intently examining the Intention Realm painting hanging on the central wall.
Chen Mu's gaze first circled around Xu Hongyu, noticing her focused and immersed state. He then turned his attention to the painting on the wall. At first glance, he saw what resembled a galaxy falling from the heavens.
"Whistling Wind Concept..." Chen Mu murmured to himself.
Even through the window, he could sense the profound concept contained within the painting. The dense essence of the Kan Water Concept seemed ready to burst out of the painting and engulf the entire courtyard.
In comparison, the Thunderbolt Concept in his hands seemed like a roadside trinket, not even worth mentioning.
"The gap is so huge," Chen Mu realized after a while, shaking his head slightly.
He had known for a long time that the inferior copied diagrams lacked the profound concepts of the genuine Eight Trigrams diagrams. Still, he never expected the difference to be so vast, akin to the disparity between a novice painter and a master at the pinnacle of the art.
But upon further thought, it made sense.
After all, copied diagrams were first created by tracing the original Eight Trigrams diagram, then engraved and printed. Even with meticulous additions based on the original after printing, it was challenging to capture the essence of the original.
The Whistling Wind Concept painting before him was a genuine high-quality diagram, allegedly created by a direct disciple of the legendary Painting Saint a thousand years ago. It was a copy of the 'Illustrated Eight Trigrams' and could be considered a 'Fourth Generation Diagram', with its origins and lineage clearly known.
In contrast, Chen Mu's Thunderbolt Concept diagram had gone through countless printings and exchanges.
Diagrams like this Whistling Wind Concept 'Fourth Generation Diagram' were not unique, but their rarity was undeniable. The Painting Saint had few direct disciples, and even with daily tracings, the number of surviving diagrams after centuries would still be limited.
Chen Mu's thoughts paused briefly, and he gathered his thoughts before quietly gazing at the Whistling Wind Concept painting, attempting to comprehend it.
After a moment, he summoned the system panel with a thought and quickly found a new entry.
[Martial Arts: Whistling Wind Concept (Unenlightened)]
[Experience: 7 points]
[Available Simulations: 0 times]
"How long has it been?" Chen Mu wondered, slightly startled by the accumulated experience points.
When he contemplated the Thunderbolt Concept, he would spend five hours each day, earning around a hundred experience points at most. It would take over three months to accumulate ten thousand experience points.
Just now, he had tried to comprehend the Whistling Wind Concept for probably just a quarter of an hour.
The time divisions in this world were similar to those in his previous life's ancient dynasty. A day and night were divided into twelve hours, each hour into eight quarters. One quarter earned him seven experience points, and an hour yielded fifty-six points.
Therefore, if he dedicated five to six hours daily to comprehending the concept painting, excluding meals, rest, and cultivation, he could earn nearly three hundred experience points a day!
The efficiency of comprehending the Whistling Wind Concept was almost three times that of the Thunderbolt Concept!
"This is even higher than I expected," Chen Mu shook his head in surprise.
If he had been able to comprehend this Whistling Wind Concept a few years ago, he might have already reached the third step of the Intention Realm by now. Unfortunately, he couldn't even come close to accessing such a concept back then.
With the Whistling Wind Concept comprehension being so efficient, what about the Departure Fire Concept? Chen Mu pondered.
He was about to turn and head towards the neighboring cottage to find the Departure Fire Concept painting.
Before he could move, a pretty figure with a hint of joy in her eyes appeared before him. Xu Hongyu, who had been contemplating the Whistling Wind Concept in the cottage, was now standing nearby, silently observing him.
Chen Mu winked at the beauty before him.
Xu Hongyu nodded in understanding, and the two quietly moved away from the courtyard, walking to an ancient pine tree not far outside. Xu Hongyu spoke softly, "How did you get here?"
Chen Mu watched as Xu Hongyu lowered her voice, and for a moment, he felt like he had returned to his previous life, tiptoeing in the library, whispering with a girl in the corner.
"Hmm..."
Xu Hongyu's elegant eyes sparkled like jade, and she blinked rapidly.
She didn't know why men liked doing such things, but seeing Chen Mu act this way towards her filled her with joy. She knew that this was something he would only do for a girl he liked.
Sensing her soft and gentle reaction, Chen Mu's gaze softened with warmth. After a brief entanglement, he leaned closer to Xu Hongyu's ear and whispered, "I wanted to see how your cultivation is going, and I have something for you."
"The comprehension of the Kan Water Concept seemed to have progressed, as Chen Mu could vaguely sense the moist Qi movement. He felt fortunate that Xu Hongyu cultivated the Kan Water Intent, for if she had practiced the Kun Mountain Intent, she might have ended up like a stone jade."
"This...you've succeeded."
Xu Hongyu looked at the brocade pouch that Chen Mu had placed in her hand, knowing it contained Bone Forging Pills. Her clear eyes blinked, revealing even more joy.
"Mhm."
Chen Mu nodded slightly. "Just now, I felt that your Qi and blood were almost condensed. In a few months, you should be able to step into the Bone Forging Realm."
At Xu Hongyu's age, with her muscles perfected, Bone Forging was no longer a challenge. When they were in close contact earlier, Chen Mu had felt the richness of her Qi and blood, which had almost reached the standard.
"It's good that you can forge your bones. Whether I can or not isn't that important."
Xu Hongyu didn't pay much attention to the Bone Forging Pills in the pouch. She quietly spoke, keeping her eyes on Chen Mu.
"Nonsense."
Chen Mu gently pinched Xu Hongyu's nose. "Not only do you need to forge your bones, but you also need to cultivate the Five Viscera. When we're old one day, I won't allow you to walk ahead of me."
Hearing these words, Xu Hongyu stared at Chen Mu with a dazed expression. The moisture in the air seemed to become denser.
Chen Mu patted Xu Hongyu's head. "Did you hear me?"
He knew that girls like Xu Hongyu were hard to move emotionally, but once they did, they would be more focused and dedicated than ordinary girls, even neglecting their martial arts.
"..." Xu Hongyu nodded lightly, carefully putting away the Bone Forging Pills.
Chen Mu then briefly recounted some of the recent events, leaving Xu Hongyu both surprised and developing a sense of coldness towards the He family.
After a while, they returned to the previous courtyard. Chen Mu escorted Xu Hongyu to the main hall where the Kan Water Concept was kept, and then he walked alone towards the adjacent rooms. He quickly found the room where the Li Fire Concept was stored and entered.
The room was spotless, devoid of any human presence.
Most of the Yu family's disciples started their martial arts training in the martial arts courtyard, practicing the sword techniques of the Kan Water lineage. Only a few with exceptional talent in other lineages would learn the techniques of those lineages.
The Li Fire lineage was the least practiced in the Yu family, as the Kan Water and Li Fire were mutually restraining. In a family where almost everyone practiced Kan Water, only those with rebellious minds would dare to train in Li Fire.
The quality of the Li Fire Concept was far inferior to that of the Kan Water Concept.
In Chen Mu's opinion, it should also be a printed concept, but it seemed slightly better than his Thunder Concept. However, the difference was minimal, unlike the obvious gap between the superior-grade Kan Water Concept.
Gazing at the Li Fire Concept, Chen Mu fell into a brief contemplation.
For him, at this point, cultivating the Li Fire Concept would be the most suitable, as Wind, Thunder, and Fire were the closest three phases. However, the lower quality of the Li Fire Concept might result in less efficient cultivation compared to the Kan Water Concept.
But now, he had an additional superior-grade Flame Jade Bed, which, when used as a couch, would create an environment highly conducive to comprehending the Li Fire Concept. He was curious if this setup would provide any additional benefits according to the system panel.
After some thought, Chen Mu decided to test the effects of the Li Fire Concept. He found an elderly Yu family member guarding the courtyard and, instead of taking the concept directly, he offered to temporarily exchange it for the Thunder Concept.
"There's no need for that. Aside from the Kan Water Concept, you can take any of the other concepts for your comprehension."
The elderly Yu family member's attitude was very gentle. On one hand, news about Chen Mu had already spread here, and on the other, Yu Jiujiang had personally instructed that all resources required for Chen Mu's cultivation should be provided by the Yu family.
"Thank you, senior," Chen Mu said, bowing respectfully.
Given the Yu family's attitude, he felt a little guilty about taking the Li Fire Concept, as the Thunder Concept was now useless to him. So, he took down the Thunder Concept and hung it in an empty room.
This Thunder Concept had originally belonged to the Yu family, and after a full circle, it had returned to its original place.
Chen Mu put away the Li Fire Concept and made his way back to his own courtyard. His bedroom was still under renovation.
The Flame Jade Bed was not in his bedroom but in the inner room of his cultivation chamber. Chen Mu didn't pay much attention to the progress of his bedroom's renovation and headed straight to his cultivation chamber, walking into the inner room.
He lit a lamp, illuminating the previously pitch-black room. In the center lay the Flame Jade, its entire body a deep red color.
It wasn't quite appropriate to call it a bed at this point, as it hadn't been cut or polished, and its surface wasn't flat. However, Chen Mu didn't intend to lie down on it for sleep; he only wanted to use it to comprehend the Li Fire Concept.
He put down the lamp and walked over, sitting cross-legged on the Flame Jade. He placed the Li Fire Concept in front of him.
(End of Chapter)
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