Grinding Cultivation Toward Martial Saint

Thinking of this, he glanced at the man beside him and then cautiously said, "My lord, why not just bluff Yan Duwei like Captain Feng does?"

"What, you think I'm no match for Jiang Ning?" the man said.

Vice Officer Jin immediately spoke up, "My lord's strength is second only to that of the Residence Master himself, outmatched by no one in Luoshui County. The insignificant Jiang Ning is naturally no match for my lord!"

"But Luoshui County is Jiang Ning's territory, and he also has the Inspection Office behind him."

"My lord, if we were to clash with them, we would ultimately be outnumbered and outmatched!"

Upon hearing this, the man laughed heartily.

Then he patted Vice Officer Jin on the shoulder, "You do see the big picture! You're right, I couldn't be bothered to take on this thankless task!"

As his voice fell.

He strode forward.

"Let's go! Into the city!"

"Yes, my lord!" Vice Officer Jin hastily jogged to catch up, "My lord, do we still need to investigate the matter with Cao Rong?"

"Investigate what?" the man said, "Let's go drink and have fun, get ourselves some injuries in a few days and then return!"

"Understood!" Vice Officer Jin immediately chuckled and followed.

...

The next day.

The weather was clear, the sunlight bright, and the sky cloudless.

The warm sun hung high above, radiating endless light and warmth.

It was also a rare good weather day.

Jiang Ning had been practicing his boxing in his yard all this time.

[Five Animals Fist Experience Value +4]

[Five Animals Fist Experience Value +3]

[Five Animals Fist Experience Value +4]

[...]

Practice makes perfect, the essence becomes clear through repetition.

Through repeated practice of the boxing technique, Jiang Ning was gradually gaining more insights into Five Animals Fist.

After a good while.

"Hoo—"

Jiang Ning collected his Fist Force, exhaling a breath of impure energy from his belly.

By now, his body was soaked with sweat, emitting a great deal of heat, with steam rising from his head.

[Skill]: Five Animals Fist (First Limit Breaking 1723/2000) (Trait: Five Internal Organs Store Essence)

He glanced at his panel and then closed it.

"Soon!"

"With my current rate of progress, Five Animals Fist should reach Second Limit Breaking by midnight tonight."

And by that time, it was almost 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

Jiang Ning's figure leaped over the tall courtyard wall to arrive at Rough Stone Beach.

Then he made a huge breach on the icy surface of the lake.

The day's rare clear weather naturally meant he had to seize the opportunity to breathe and release the Great Sun Essence Qi, increasing his Inner Elixir Cultivation Skill experience.

Moments later.

Jiang Ning was sitting cross-legged in the middle of the lake, his upper body above the water, his lower half submerged.

The lake water started to refreeze gradually.

Just then, Jiang Ning, like a Daoist expert, began to absorb and exhale the Great Sun Essence Qi towards the brilliant sun.

As the Great Sun Essence Qi entered his belly, roiling waves of heat emanated from his body.

The lake water that was just about to freeze suddenly began to melt, the surrounding ice slowly dissolving as well.

Suddenly.

Jiang Ning's eyes snapped open, a look of joy in his gaze.

Something was off!

He looked up at the clear sky, cloudless and sunny, with the sun hanging high. Even though half his body was in the water, he could still feel the warmth of the sunlight.

The next moment.

He leaped from the water onto the adjacent ice.

Then, he inhaled towards the sun overhead and a scorching stream of Great Sun Essence Qi was drawn into his belly through his nostrils.

He slowly closed his eyes.

After a few breaths.

He opened his eyes, revealing a joyous look.

That moment, he was certain; with the Great Sun Essence Qi inside him, there was no longer the feeling of burning within his five internal organs that there had been before.

[Skill]: Water and Fire True Strength (Second Limit Breaking 48/3000) (Trait: Water and Fire Immortal Clothes, Water and Fire Control)

[Water and Fire Immortal Clothes]: Possessing the Water and Fire Immortal Clothes, can avoid water and fire, fearless of both.

"Could it be because of this, because of the trait of Water and Fire Immortal Clothes?" Jiang Ning murmured to himself.

He had made attempts previously.

After obtaining the Water and Fire Immortal Clothes, even flames reaching upwards of a thousand degrees could not inflict any burn on his body.

"It must be!" Looking at the explanation of Water and Fire Immortal Clothes on the panel, Jiang Ning instantly affirmed his guess.

A thousand-degree flame was ineffective against him; he could bathe in magma.

In that case, what was the temperature of the Great Sun Essence Qi?

It naturally couldn't cause a burning sensation in his five internal organs anymore.

Thinking about this, his heart couldn't help but swell with joy.

Unafraid of the scorching of the Great Sun Essence Qi, this meant that his efficiency in breathing and releasing the Great Sun Essence Qi would also improve.

With increased efficiency came faster growth in Experience Value.

Furthermore, the speed of his Inner Breath's growth would increase too.

The next moment,

he sat cross-legged on the ice as if he were a Daoist master, raising his head to breathe in and out the Great Sun Essence Qi above him.

[Inner Elixir Cultivation Skill EXP +1]

[Inner Elixir Cultivation Skill EXP +1]

[Inner Elixir Cultivation Skill EXP +1]

[...]

The frequency of prompts suddenly more than doubled.

As time slowly passed, the Inner Elixir Cultivation Skill experience continued to increase.

Around 11:00 a.m., at noon,

Jiang Ning slowly opened his eyes.

He exhaled deeply, releasing an astonishing wave of heat from his belly, and the icy layer in front of him melted a shallow outer layer, revealing a wet sheen.

Then, in the chilling drift coming off the ice, it quickly re-froze.

[This time breathing and releasing the Great Sun Essence Qi, Inner Elixir Cultivation Skill experience increased by a total of 98 points.]

With a thought, a summary prompt appeared before him.

Looking at the prompt before him, Jiang Ning's eyes revealed a hint of elation.

This efficiency, how much faster than before, more than doubled?

[Skill]: Inner Elixir Cultivation Skill (small success 991/5000)

"With my current efficiency, in just over forty days of sunrise, my Inner Elixir Cultivation Skill will enter Great Success, achieving a level of Inner Breath like Gang!"

"Who would have thought the Water and Fire Immortal Clothes would have such a magical effect!!"

Jiang Ning's heart was filled with many emotions.

Today was the only clear sunny day since obtaining the Water and Fire Immortal Clothes.

And because of this sunny day, he learned that the Water and Fire Immortal Clothes had the effect of more than doubling his efficiency in breathing in and releasing the Great Sun Essence Qi, which on its base level already was quite potent.

What would've taken eighty to ninety days of clear weather now only required about forty.

Thinking this, Jiang Ning couldn't help but shake his head as he looked at the sky above.

"It's a pity that there's so little nice weather in this winter, it's either snowing or cloudy!!"

"If there were more sunny days for my Inner Elixir Cultivation to break through the next realm quickly, to have means comparable to the peak of Fifth Grade, even if the Qinghe Marquis Mansion sought trouble, I'd have no fear at all!!"

...

Returning to the courtyard, Jiang Ning continued to practice his boxing.

Under the warm sun, he was drenched in sweat.

All of a sudden.

Tap tap tap—

The sound of footsteps came from outside the courtyard.

Jiang Ning looked up and saw Jiang Li slowly appearing in his line of sight.

"Big brother?"

"Ah Ning!" Jiang Li immediately revealed a look of simplicity and honesty.

"Big brother...is there something you need?"

Jiang Li said, "Ah Ning, have you forgotten? At the third quarter past noon, it's time for the Cao family to be publicly executed at the market square. We should almost start heading there to watch."

On hearing this, Jiang Ning suddenly came to a realization.

"So it's time for the Cao family's execution!"

"Ah Ning, shall we go?" Jiang Li asked.

"Let's go!" Jiang Ning affirmed with a nod.

Then he said, "Wait here for me, big brother. I'm going to take a quick wash and change my clothes!"

After saying this, Jiang Ning vaulted over the wall of the courtyard and headed toward the lake.

After breaking through the ice, he entered the icy waters to wash away the sweat.

Then he changed his clothes in the water.

When he reemerged on shore, the damp clothes on his body instantly dried, leaving no trace of wetness behind.

"This ability is truly convenient!" Jiang Ning nodded in satisfaction.

Having mastered the Water Manipulation Technique, any drenched clothes could instantly dry in his hands.

Immediately after, he thought of something.

He shook his head regretfully, "Too bad the Water Manipulation Technique can't separate blood."

He had tried this method before.

Initially, when he operated the Water Manipulation Technique, it seemed his body was covered by a natural field, and he couldn't even separate the blood from an ordinary person's body.

Even now, he couldn't do it, unable to separate water from within the human body.

A moment later.

He reappeared before Jiang Li.

"Big brother, let's go!"

Jiang Li looked at Jiang Ning's attire and was slightly surprised.

Then he didn't say anything and nodded slightly.