"A thousand taels, right? Okay, I've noted it down!"
Ji Yu recorded Ye Li's information, saying,
"This money needs to be paid to you in one lump sum. The amount is quite large, so let me apply to the gang for it."
"It should be available around tomorrow. Just wait patiently for one night."
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Ye Li readily agreed, smiling as he thanked Ji Yu for his help before getting up and leaving.
Throughout the entire process, Ye Li maintained a smiling expression in Feng Yue's view.
Thinking about the thousand taels of silver (at least 1 million) arriving tomorrow, anyone who could still maintain composure could be diagnosed with depression.
With this silver, he could purchase a large number of Body Tempering Pills for cultivation.
One Body Tempering Pill grants 20 experience points, and one Dragon Tiger Pill grants 6 experience points.
Add to that the 1 point increase from half an hour of diligent cultivation, and the 2 points increase from passive breathing exercises daily.
One Body Tempering Pill and three Dragon-Tiger Pills a day, seven hours of cultivation.
The experience points gained in a day can reach: [20 + 6 × 3 + (14 - 6) + 2] = 48 points,
at least 1440 points a month!
Reading Comprehension: What intention does the above lines express?
Answer: It expresses the author's homesickness!
Anyway, after a top-level intellectual battle involving four arithmetic operations, Ye Li calculated a conclusion that even Einstein couldn't find wrong:
maintaining the current cultivation efficiency, he can reach the mid-stage in at most 40 days!
Just like a classic question, 5 trillion or Frieza's 500 million fighting power, which would you choose? There is no comparative value.
In this high martial arts world, fists are power!
Money is just a number; only when it is transformed into strength is it real.
As long as he continues to cultivate, he can continue to borrow money, and debt will always lag behind him!
And after reaching the acquired stage, or even the innate stage, he will have the power to print money; how much he wants is just a matter of a word.
The neighbors next door have started taking out loans to cultivate immortality, so he also has to be prepared to take out loans to practice martial arts!
To be honest, Ye Li is mentally prepared.
If the gang doesn't lend money tomorrow, he'll swallow his pride and ask Wang Xian's wealthy father for some financial assistance.
Or, he can use his genius as an excuse to do more gigs in various places, attract venture capital, and get an angel round for his startup. Ye Li
's past experience as a beggar broadcaster taught him that if you're going to sell yourself, you have to be willing to go all out!
In the early stages of accumulating strength to snowball his fortune, Ye Li absolutely will not allow his cultivation speed to be slowed down by external conditions.
If the general environment is bad, then he'll rely on his subjective initiative to change it!
A living person can't just die of thirst, can they?
With a sliver of hope for tomorrow's money, Ye Li said goodbye to Feng Yue and headed towards Yun Jin Street. After all,
he was in charge of managing this place, and even if he usually did nothing, he still had to stay nearby, otherwise it wouldn't be good if he couldn't be found in case of an emergency.
Anyway, Yun Jin Street wasn't far from his courtyard house on Changyuan Street, so he could quickly go home after work.
Walking towards Yun Jin Street, Ye Li pondered,
"From now on, I'll just rent a courtyard during the day for normal cultivation. I'll deal with using the Dragon-Tiger Pill at night when I return to the courtyard."
After all, using the Dragon-Tiger Pill would be incredibly powerful.
If an emergency occurred during the day, let alone being distracted by meeting his two-dimensional waifu, would he be able to focus on solving the problem?
Even if he could move normally, fighting with a fire poker on his head would be too bizarre and a psychological challenge for Ye Li!
On his way to Yun Jin Street, Ye Li suddenly noticed something unusual.
In the very center of the road, a man in white, not yet thirty, stood amidst the crowd, long sword in hand, and declared indignantly:
"Fellow villagers, the people of Great Xia are suffering terribly these days, I'm sure you all feel the same way!"
"Guangming today is rife with corrupt officials, exorbitant taxes, and rampant gangs—it's hardly an environment for normal living!"
"If you are dissatisfied, why not listen to my account of the current situation?"
"If you have any questions, feel free to ask me anything. Whether it's matters of state or conflicts in the martial world, I know a thing or two!"
Ye Li stared at the white-clad man giving his speech, his face showing shock.
Publicly discussing and criticizing the government, and the Guangming constables didn't care?
How powerful must this guy's background be?
Looking closer, Ye Li noticed that the white-clad man's aura was so strong it couldn't be concealed.
Judging by his cultivation level, he was at least at the Body Tempering stage, and the sword in his hand was of exceptional quality, unlike any ordinary weapon.
'What young master has nothing better to do than cultivate and talk about this in public?' Ye Li's lips twitched speechlessly.
But he didn't comment further.
If the police didn't care, why should he?
Silently bypassing the man in white, Ye Li quickly left the area.
However, his hurried manner attracted the attention of others.
Wei Chi, mingling among the disciples of the Chuangyuan Martial Arts School, was practicing the most basic stance training, but his gaze remained fixed on the increasingly distant Ye Li.
'Azure Dragon Gang uniform, I've never seen anyone like him before. His cultivation level is early Body Tempering. Is he a new core disciple?'
His distracted gaze caused the girl supervising him to unconsciously furrow her brow:
"Wei Chi, don't keep getting distracted. Your aptitude is so poor; you were lucky to break through to Body Tempering. From now on, you should focus on your cultivation and not be distracted!"
Hearing the girl's advice, Wei Chi replied woodenly, "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Sister!"
Silently withdrawing his gaze, Wei Chi continued to immerse himself in cultivation, sensing the circulation of his blood energy.
If there were an investigative entry, it would reveal that
the blood energy within the seemingly dull young man's body, enveloped by a network of qi and blood, had already solidified like lead and mercury, his flesh as if cast from iron, already nearing the late stage of Body Tempering.
This was entirely contrary to the girl's claim of a lucky breakthrough to the early stage of Body Tempering.
[Heaven Rewards Diligence - Blue], this was Wei Chi's entry; as long as he worked hard, he would be rewarded!
Although his innate talent was somewhat lacking, through accumulated cultivation, he could see subtle progress each time!
The only regret was that while hard work brought rewards, with each breakthrough in his realm, the improvement from each cultivation session became increasingly scarce.
It was said that hard work would be rewarded, but whether the reward was 100, 10, or even 0.01, it was still a reward.
This was also why his entry was only blue!
'Simply cultivating yields increasingly meager improvements in realm; to break through to the late stage without external assistance, at least a year of arduous work is required!'
Wei Chi silently pondered, beginning to calculate where his cultivation resources would come from.
The urgent need for resources reminded him of the last time he obtained martial arts supplies—when he killed a Lone Wolf Gang member who had undergone Body Tempering.
In a sneak attack, relying on a sharp weapon, he sliced through the opponent's blood and qi network with a single strike, disemboweling him.
Afterwards, he looted over a hundred taels of silver notes and a martial arts manual from the opponent's home.
'So, should I return to my old ways?' A glint of greed flashed in Wei Chi's eyes.
After all, even if he killed someone, no one would suspect that the murderer was someone as incompetent as him, a mere 'early Body Tempering' cultivator!
'However, I still need to be careful.' Thinking of what he had recently witnessed, the greed in Wei Chi's eyes suddenly narrowed.
This Guangming City was far from peaceful.
Late at night, in silence,
at the headquarters of the Azure Dragon Gang in the east of the city, a middle-aged man turned to look at Feng Yue, who was respectfully performing the disciple's salute .
"You mean, after Ye Li met Lu Xiuyuan, he went to the gang's bank and borrowed a large sum of money?"
"Reporting to Elder Yang, that's exactly right!" Feng Yue answered respectfully and honestly.
The middle-aged man before him was named Yang Shichang, who had joined the gang thirty years ago.
Before he was forty, he had advanced to the mid-stage of the Acquired Realm thanks to his martial arts talent.
Such talent, though unlikely to be attained through innate cultivation, offered a chance to reach the Acquired Realm perfection of the gang leader within his lifetime!
Around Feng Yue, not only Yang Shichang, but eight elders were gathered, all staring intently at him.
They were discussing how to deal with the two gang geniuses, Ye Li and Lu Xiuyuan.
Being watched by so many Acquired Realm experts, Feng Yue felt his breathing become heavy.
Upon hearing Feng Yue's report, an elder clad in black robes chuckled,
"This young man is quite clever, actually resorting to borrowing money. But does he really think he can break through to the Acquired Realm with enough resources?"
The elder's words were echoed by all the elders present.
Having all risen through the ranks from ordinary disciples, they understood how difficult it was to overcome the barriers between realms.
While the initial stage of Body Tempering could be reached through diligent practice, each minor realm was subject to time constraints depending on talent.
Reaching the Acquired Realm from Body Tempering Perfection presented a completely new challenge.
It required a deep understanding of martial arts, mastery of power, and knowledge of muscle structure—far beyond the step-by-step progression of Body Tempering.
A relentless financial offensive would only lead to stagnation at Body Tempering Perfection, and even minor realm advancements would become excruciatingly difficult.
"This isn't some clever trick."
Hearing the black-robed elder's words, Yang Shichang frowned and said, "Elder Wang, this is already showing signs of disloyalty to the gang."
"Clearly, Ye Li feels that the gang is focusing all its resources on cultivating Lu Xiuyuan, so he wants to break through on his own without relying on the gang's help."
"Impossible, he still borrowed money through the gang's channels." An elder questioned.
Yang Shichang shook his head and said,
"I ask you, if this gets out, a genius who only needs two months to break through to the Body Tempering Realm has actually been reduced to needing to borrow money from his own faction to meet his daily cultivation needs, what will they think?"
Silence—
hearing Yang Shichang's words, the elders present imagined the scene he was creating.
If this happened to another faction, they would immediately laugh at him and then decisively offer a large sum of money to poach him.
Geniuses are the future of a faction, and the more the better!
"Another question," Yang Shichang said,
"If Ye Li's loan sharking comes through, what will he think when he sees a thousand taels in his hand?"
No one answered, so Yang Shichang explained directly, "He'll think the gang isn't short of money, they just don't want to give it to him."
"The gang already has Lu Xiuyuan's blue tag, so they don't value him."
"What if other forces were willing to offer two thousand taels, or even ten thousand taels, to hire him at this time?"
"Is ten thousand taels a lot for a genius like him? It might not even be enough for a few of us to cultivate for a year."
No one answered. After a brief silence, Elder Wang, dressed in black robes, chuckled sinisterly,
"Young people these days are really ungrateful. I think Old Yang is exaggerating a bit. When we fought alongside the gang leader, we didn't have such good conditions."
"Having two Body Tempering Pills is good enough. Can't he endure some hardship, persevere, and accumulate experience for a while? Once he proves his loyalty, of course we'll cultivate him properly."
"Anyway, it's just slowing down his cultivation speed by a year or two. He's so young, what's wrong with waiting a bit?"
Yang Shichang frowned and said,
"Don't even mention waiting a year. With the Li family's threat, Ye Li might face their retaliation next month."
"Are you expecting Ye Li, with his early Body Tempering stage cultivation and status as a core disciple, to face those few acquired cultivators from the Li family?"
Silence...
The elders present, considering Ye Li's current situation, realized how dire it truly was.
As for Feng Yue, he was just a minor Body Tempering stage instructor. He kept his eyes down and didn't dare to overstep his bounds in the slightest during the elders' argument.
Yang Shichang said calmly, "Things are different now than before. The younger generation in the gang is facing a talent gap."
"The most talented members were almost entirely wiped out in the battles against the Poison Wolf Gang a few years ago, and we only have Xiu Yuan left as a core disciple with the blue attribute." "
Although we've managed to keep our territory in the east of the city from being eroded thanks to the gang leader's cultivation, we have no successors." "
These past few years have been alright, but what will happen when our generation gets old? Who will take care of us in our old age? Rely on the Poison Wolf Gang?"
"Training disciples is for our own good. You all know the character of those beasts from the western district in the Poison Wolf Gang. If we lose in the struggle, we really won't have to worry about what happens after we retire."
"Elder Yang is right," an elder echoed. "Making promising newcomers in the gang take out loans to train in martial arts is too stingy."
"Why not waive the loan and find an elder to take him as a disciple, and train him with the same treatment as Lu Xiuyuan?"
Seeing everyone agreeing, the black-robed elder quickly interjected, "The Li family's problem can be solved by the gang, but giving a core disciple such preferential treatment is not in accordance with the rules."
Yang Shichang frowned and glared at the black-robed elder, saying, "Wang Luhe, you didn't follow the rules like this when you were dealing with Lu Xiuyuan. You can't show such favoritism just because Lu Xiuyuan is your disciple."
Caught off guard, Wang Luhe's lips twitched as he said,
"I'm doing this for the gang, don't bring up irrelevant things."
"You'd better really be!"
Yang Shichang's calm reply left Wang Luhe speechless.
"I propose that the thousand taels be distributed to Ye Li as usual, for his own use, without interest!" "
However, a test must be set. If he passes, he doesn't need to repay; if he fails, he only needs to return the principal!"
Yang Shichang paused, then said, "As for this requirement..."
"I must reach the mid-stage of Body Tempering within five months!!!"
The next day, inside Wantong Textile. Ye
Li, who had gotten up early, didn't go to Huichun Lane first, but instead came here to collect his money.
At this moment, staring at Ji Yu and Feng Yue in front of him, he couldn't suppress his shock upon hearing this so-called requirement.
"Good!" Feng Yue solemnly conveyed the order on behalf of the elders:
"I know this request is very difficult, but it represents the elders' high hopes for you. We hope you can overcome it."
"If you fulfill the request, you won't have to pay back the thousand taels!"
Ye Li: Is there really such a freebie?
"This is too difficult... Elder is just making things difficult for me!"
Ji Yu thought to himself as he heard the elder demand that Ye Li break through to the mid-stage of Body Tempering within five months! He was currently hovering around this stage, so he was well aware of the difficulties involved. It took him five months to break through from mortal to Body Tempering. And it took him a full 16 months to break through from the early to mid-stage of Body Tempering
! Among these, drawing in Qi and blood and tempering muscles took him a year to reach the peak of the early stage of Body Tempering. The remaining four months were spent on profound and mysterious comprehension, searching for that glimmer of opportunity to break through the bottleneck! Of course, the reason why it took him a year to hone his body to the peak of the early stage of Body Tempering, even with two Body Tempering Pills per month, was related to the allure of the girls in Huichun Lane. Even the strongest body can't withstand two hours of intense training in Huichun Lane every day, just like taking one Tiger Wolf Pill. Every day's training was used up, and the replenishment couldn't keep up with the depletion. It wasn't until six months later, when he no longer needed the Tiger Wolf Pill, that he finally mastered the art of physical training. In Ji Yu's view, even if Ye Li could resist the temptation and complete his physical training within five months with a massive amount of Body Tempering Pills, that mysterious and profound understanding would still take at least a month to achieve. However, although the two knew this request was difficult, it was still much better than the original plan that required not only repayment of the principal but also interest. Unlike the two people in front of him , Ye Li, upon hearing this news, could only force a straight face and say, "I agree to this request. Quickly bring me one thousand taels." A stick of incense later, Ye Li solemnly accepted the one thousand taels from Ji Yu, feeling the weight of the money in his hand. 'At least three months' worth of cultivation resources are secured!' " Realm: Early Body Tempering Stage (75/1834) "Azure Dragon Strength (1918/100)" ... Looking at the values displayed on the progress bar, Ye Li's eyes were filled with unwavering determination. With [World-Shaking Wisdom], whatever insights he lacked, the corresponding entry would provide them, making his foundation even more stable than those martial artists who toiled to break through. What bottleneck? He thought it was a speed bump. However, this little incident made Ye Li realize that his behavior had probably attracted the attention of the elders. Since becoming a core disciple, he had thought he was being left to his own devices, wondering why no one had paid attention to his talent. It turned out they had been secretly watching. Sure enough, they should be put under some pressure; only those who cause trouble can get enough attention. As for any tests, he didn't care at all. Five months? With a sufficient supply of pills, that would probably be enough for him to cultivate to the late Body Tempering Stage! Stroking the silver notes in his hand, Ye Li was already considering when to go to the Hundred Treasures Hall to make some purchases. Emerging from Wantongfang, Feng Yue offered a suggestion: "This time, you've gained the elders' attention thanks to Elder Yang Shichang's guidance." Ye Li's expression shifted slightly: "Elder Yang Shichang?" "Yes, Elder Yang advanced to the mid-stage of the Acquired Realm before the age of forty. Moreover, he's devoted to the gang, not taking sides, and wholeheartedly serving the gang. It was he who fought hard to secure these benefits for you." " Three years ago, the gang fell into the Poison Wolf Gang's trap. If it weren't for Elder Yang leading the team to fight their way out, we fear all the outstanding young disciples would have been wiped out." " After that battle, the blow was too great, so Elder Yang retired from the front lines, devoting himself to martial arts. Ironically, he made even greater progress, breaking through to the mid-stage." "Although the demands this time are a bit strict, regardless of the outcome, it's much better than the original 30% annual interest rate. There's no timeframe for repayment, so you don't need to rush." Ye Li thoughtfully said, "In that case, I should indeed express my gratitude properly! But what do you mean by saying the gang's younger generation was wiped out?" "Literally, all three disciples with blue-level attributes in the gang have died, including the gang leader's personal disciple." " Therefore, we urgently need newcomers to take the lead. The requirements for gang members have been extended from the original five months to six months for body tempering to become core disciples." Feng Yue briefly introduced the current situation of the gang to Ye Li. Silently listening to Feng Yue's explanation, Ye Li suddenly noticed the key point of this passage: 'The gang leader has no personal disciples, so isn't he just a lonely old man? Who can take the lead in the Azure Dragon Gang in the future?' The two said goodbye before approaching Huichun Lane, and Ye Li entered the brothel lane alone. As he approached, he saw a young man dressed in the attire of the Azure Dragon Gang stumble backward in the alley, saying , "Don't give me any more! I've been taking Dragon Tiger Pills for five months, I really can't take any more." In front of the young man, the heavily made-up Third Sister smiled and said, "Little Brother Wang, don't resist, this stuff is good for you." "What good is it? I've been taking it every day for the past five months, and I've lost more than I've gained! Even two Body Tempering Pills a month wouldn't be enough!" The young man surnamed Wang cried, "Elder Li, I just want to practice properly, please don't force me! I'm a dignified Body Tempering martial artist, and now my legs tremble every day, even standing in a stance is difficult." Thinking of the past five months, tears streamed down his face. The first month was alright, the initial taste of forbidden fruit was exhilarating! But after a month, once the initial energy dissipated, every day became torture. It's not that I didn't enjoy it, but after the pleasure, the lingering pain in my lower back and the weakness in my limbs made me feel terrified by my state of exhaustion.
The hardware quality is too poor, unable to keep up with the performance degradation of the software!
For martial arts practitioners, the most important thing is to avoid leakage.
For the past five months, the young man has been leaking several times a day, without any method of intense combat or the aid of the Yin-Yang Secret Technique, naturally becoming increasingly weak.
Seeing that her advice had no effect, Third Sister's face turned cold as she said,
"Don't blame the Dragon-Tiger Pill for your own lack of willpower. If you could endure it, with the Dragon-Tiger Body Tempering combined for these five months, you would have already reached the peak of the initial stage!"
With that, Third Sister's figure transformed into a ghostly afterimage, attacking the young man!
Amidst the young man's bitter expression, Third Sister grabbed him by the back of the neck like a chicken, and with a burst of force, the boy's tightly closed mouth opened uncontrollably.
"You have to eat it whether you want to or not!"
Third Sister snorted coldly, directly grabbing the Dragon-Tiger Pill and shoving it into his mouth.
A moment later, it felt like flames rising in his lower abdomen.
The young man's expression changed, inwardly cursing, "Oh no!" His lower head had successfully taken control of his upper head!
With his identities reversed (Big Head Son, Small Head Dad), he stumbled and ran towards Huichun Lane with a long face.
In the lane, several women were already waiting with smiles, waving to the young man!
Ye Li stood aside, silently watching the whole process, recalling the scene of Third Sister's attack—that ghostly speed was so fast he couldn't even see it.
This was only at the early stage of the Acquired Realm; a difference of one major realm resulted in such overwhelming power.
Noticing Ye Li, Third Sister's face regained its smile, saying, "Little Brother Ye, do you also want Third Sister to feed you personally?"
Ye Li didn't speak, but walked straight to Third Sister.
He held out his hand, waiting for her to hand him the medicine.