122 The Path of Martial Arts

As always, I make my three requests: please vote, please recommend, and please add to your library! Please add to your library, add to your library, add to your library, add to your library!

In early November, Yang Tang did not buy the trash inner cultivation method "Oriental Manual" sold at the valley shop. Instead, he continued to practice the Golden Goose Technique, the Shaolin Nine Yang Technique, and the Xiaoyao Mind Method. Yang Tang was well aware that with his "Reincarnated Prodigy" talent, as long as he trained all three inner cultivation methods to the tenth level, his health and internal energy would rise to around 3,000. Furthermore, his "Inner Cultivation" base attribute would reach 100, while the other five base attributes—Soft Power, Hard Power, Eye Technique, Ear Technique, and Lightness Technique—could all be raised to 120 thanks to the talent bonus.

One must know that Soft Power boosts counterattacks, Hard Power reduces damage taken, Ear Technique increases evasion, Eye Technique boosts critical hits, and the final Lightness Technique increases movement range in turn-based combat. Being able to train these five basic attributes to 120, while everyone else is capped at 100, provided a significant advantage in battle.

In truth, when using weapon styles like swordsmanship or staff techniques, the combination of the "Reincarnated Prodigy" talent and the "I’m Rich" perk did not yield as much base damage as "Weapon Master" combined with "I’m Rich." However, "Reincarnated Prodigy" possessed a massive advantage: whether it was basic skills, combat styles, or inner cultivation methods, the training speed was incredibly fast. For someone like Yang Tang, who harbored ulterior motives, this was naturally excellent.

By mid-November, Yang Tang learned Ear Technique from Wuxiazi. He practiced diligently until the end of the month, when he encountered Qin Hongshang of the Thunderbolt Hall at the entrance of Xiaoyao Valley. Unfortunately, because the dream quest required Yang Tang to follow the "Hegemon" path, romancing maidens was essentially off the table. Thus, there was no need to curry favor with Qin Hongshang, and he even ended up saving Huang Luo, whom she was hunting.

After driving Qin Hongshang away, Wuxiazi ordered Yang Tang to escort Huang Luo home. Later, in Dukang Village, Yang Tang discovered Huang Luo’s true colors and fought two fierce battles at the Huang residence. Relying on his passive evasion skill and the Golden Goose Technique, he managed to grind down the brothers Ba Long and Ba Hu. At that moment, Qin Hongshang appeared, having chased Huang Luo into the main hall of the Huang residence. Knowing this was part of the plot, Yang Tang followed her into the hall, only for them both to be trapped by fire. At the height of the crisis, Gu Yuexuan and Jing Ji, who had outflanked them, knocked Huang Luo out of the secret passage.

After a few pointless words in the burning hall, they each retreated through the secret passage. Yang Tang, walking last, saw Huang Luo pinned under debris. Instead of saving him, he kicked him while he was down, pushing a vase onto him. The "Enlightenment" prompt appeared: Dreamer's Morality -10, Comprehension +10!

With this, Yang Tang’s comprehension reached 67 points. In the following days, apart from training his six basic skills and swordsmanship, Yang Tang learned to fish, as consuming Rainbow Carp and Divine Fish could increase health and internal energy.

By early December, Yang Tang strolled through the forest and encountered Jiang Yu, son of the Luoluo Hero Jiang Tianxiong, who was discussing Buddhism. Yang Tang acted as an audience, gaining Jiang Yu’s favor and receiving another "Enlightenment" prompt: Dreamer's Comprehension +10! Thus, Yang Tang’s comprehension reached 77.

In mid-December, Yang Tang earned the favor of Old Hu, Wuxiazi’s loyal servant, unlocking the "Blacksmithing" function. After writing several letters to Old Hu, Yang Tang learned to craft various weapons, though they were not what he wanted. In fact, his mind had been active since he realized the Golden Goose Technique provided a fixed 20% evasion bonus. After pondering for days, he finally devised what he considered the optimal setup: Dual weapons "Mother-Son Swords," "Fuxi Armor," the "Turtle Statue," the "Fallen Flower Manual" inner skill, and the dual-wielding "Netherworld Thirteen Styles."

The Mother-Son Swords had a combo effect; the low attack power was not an issue, as Yang Tang could boost his stats through frequent combat. The Fuxi Armor provided guaranteed accuracy, nullifying the high evasion of late-game masters. The Turtle Statue had a 50% chance to prevent critical hits, protecting him from high-damage bursts. As for the Fallen Flower Manual, it offered three effects: "Flying Sorrow" (progressive evasion up to 40%), "Chain Slash" (another turn after a kill, though internal energy cost doubles), and "Phantom Shadow" (movement +2, action level +2). This manual could be bought at the Xiaoyao Valley shop.

Finally, there was the Netherworld Thirteen Styles. It was a dual-wielding style with a swordsmanship attribute bonus, obtainable only by romancing Ren Qingxuan. Fortunately, she didn't have much screen time, so it wouldn't waste much of Yang Tang's time. For this set of gear and skills, Yang Tang spent all his time training basic skills and plotting how to acquire them. Fortunately, the Mother-Son Swords could be found in a treasure chest in Hangzhou, the Fallen Flower Manual could be bought, and the Turtle Statue could be traded for. Only the Fuxi Armor had to be crafted personally with Old Hu’s guidance, which was quite a chore.

Luckily, Yang Tang was not pursuing the "Lover" ending of dating ten maidens, so he saved a massive amount of time for training and crafting. It was a fair trade-off.

In the blink of an eye, Yang Tang had been in Xiaoyao Valley for half a year. On New Year's Day, Wuxiazi gave red envelopes to Gu Yuexuan, Jing Ji, and Yang Tang. The next day, Yang Tang met Old Man Orange, and while strolling in the forest, he met Xianyin, one of the Seven Sages of Carefree Valley. My god, whether or not he could solidify his zither skills depended on her! Unfortunately, even though Yang Tang answered her questions correctly during their first meeting, she didn't teach him anything useful.

By late February, Gu Yuexuan, Jing Ji, and Yang Tang were sent to Luoyang to celebrate Jiang Tianxiong’s birthday. After entering the city, Yang Tang bought incense. Leaving the shop, he encountered Tianshan disciples discussing mink fur. He simply gave them the three furs he had hunted, and they gifted him the "Xiaoyao Staff Technique." Following that, he offered incense at the White Horse Temple, triggering a four-choice scenario. Drawing on his memory of the game, he chose the first option, and the "Enlightenment" prompt appeared: Dreamer's Comprehension +20! His comprehension was now 97.

Turning back, Yang Tang visited the pawnshop and antique store, obtaining the "Jade Fish Dragon." He then ducked into a nearby residence, spoke to a fisherman, and learned the fish stall was out of stock and needed Rainbow Carp. After leaving, he visited the Heavenly Sword Sect and the escort agency, learning that the Wudang sect leader loved the Jade Fish Dragon. He returned to the Jiang residence near the city gate and traded the jade for the "Tai Chi Fist Manual." After learning it, his defense increased by 100.

At this point, Yang Tang’s strength was impressive: health and internal energy over 3,600, attack near 180, and defense over 260. His stats were: Martial Arts 166, Practical Combat 152, Comprehension 97, Swordsmanship 88, Fist/Palm 80, Legwork 20, Staff 19, Blade 41, Hidden Weapons 65, Dual Wielding 0, Finger/Claw 0, Short Handle 0, Zither 0. His five base attributes—Lightness, Hard, Soft, Ear, and Eye—were all maxed at 120, and his inner cultivation was maxed at 100.

Yang Tang reviewed his status, feeling satisfied. He spotted the Shaolin monk Wuse sitting across from the Wudang leader, greeted him, and traded the Diamond Sutra he had scavenged from Wudian for the Turtle Statue. He then greeted Jiang Tianxiong and other sect leaders. Hearing the banquet wouldn't start until 7:00 PM, he went out to wander, giving two Rainbow Carp to the fish-selling girl Xu Yuan, who gifted him a Bamboo Fishing Rod, making future fishing more efficient.

He turned to a residence at the north gate and spoke to the scholar Li Weizhi. Answering his couplet correctly added another 3 points to his comprehension. At this point, Yang Tang’s comprehension reached 100. A joyous occasion indeed.

For the remaining time until the banquet, Yang Tang sparred with various masters in the city. He fought about ten formal battles, each rewarding him with up to 9 health, 5 internal energy, 4 attack, and 4 defense. His health and internal energy rose to 3,700, attack to 202, and defense to 281!

Then came Jiang Tianxiong’s banquet. Shortly after it began, Yecha of the Heavenly Dragon Cult led the Four Evils to attack. Relying on his high evasion, Yang Tang survived until the sect leaders intervened, forcing the group to retreat. The crisis was averted, but the banquet could not continue.

In March, Yang Tang met three more of the Seven Sages: the Divine Physician, the Drunken Immortal, and Danqing. Additionally, his wine skill reached 52. He treated Old Hu to a drink, which made the old man go on a drunken rampage. After defeating him in a formal battle, Yang Tang learned the "Hu Family Blade Technique," which was entirely area-of-effect but lacked damage—useless.

A few days later, Yang Tang learned the history of the Blade and Sword Sects, sparred with Jing Ji, and intentionally lost, unlocking dual-wielding and learning his junior brother’s "Ten Blade-Sword Slayings." In late March, he finally met Flower Fanatic, one of the Seven Sages, and received peony seeds.

Over the next month, Yang Tang trained, fished, and tended flowers. Twice, he returned to Dukang Village to pick up snake and bear gallbladders he had ordered Old He to collect. Of course, he paid Old He handsomely. By the end of April, thanks to the gallbladders and fish, his health and internal energy both broke 5,000. This was only possible in a dream or game; in reality, he would have been sick to his stomach.

Wuxiazi sent Yang Tang to deliver tea to Carefree Valley, where he received a chrysanthemum, the "Shilin Guangji," a "Ten-Perfect Vitality Pill," and the "Green Ripples Zither" from the various sages. He sparred with the Drunken Immortal, choosing to drink three times. His comprehension dropped by 30, but his attack and defense each increased by 60—a decent trade. After all, there were many "Little Yellow Books" in the town treasure chests; reading them would restore the comprehension, while gaining 60 points of attack and defense would normally require 15 formal battles.

By May, Yang Tang was a regular at Carefree Valley, visiting only the two beauties, Flower Fanatic and Xianyin. One day, after training, he wandered to the valley and heard Flower Fanatic singing loudly: "A little flower!"

Wow, with that kind of intensity, isn't she just like old man Wuxiazi?

New week, please add to your library, add to your library, add to your library!!