Chapter 10: This Debt of Gratitude Is Far from Repaid, Truly Far from Repaid

The "Swift Wind Cloud" lightness technique lives up to its name. Once unleashed, it moves with the swiftness of a gale and the ethereal grace of drifting clouds, proving highly effective both in pursuing foes and evading attacks.

Xiao Rang watched with satisfaction as Lin Heng quickly mastered the movement, progressing from awkward to proficient. When Lin Heng paused to rest, he remarked, “Disciple, for now, focus on learning these three martial arts sets. Once your foundation strengthens, I will teach you the other profound techniques.”

Lin Heng’s current strength was still shallow; even the most powerful advanced martial arts would be ineffective at this stage. Thus, Xiao Rang saw no rush to teach more. With the three external martial arts—"Cloud Sword Nineteen Forms," "Primordial Finger," and "Swift Wind Cloud"—Lin Heng could sufficiently hone his physique and defend against enemies for the time being.

“Very well,” Lin Heng replied calmly. As a novice, he trusted that the grandmaster knew best. This was not the time to improvise but to follow instructions faithfully.

After training the two martial arts sets, it was time for lunch. Today’s meal differed greatly from previous days. The watery congee made from Qingcui rice was replaced by dry rice with distinct grains. Alongside it were a plate of crisp vegetables, some meat, and a bowl of black-bone chicken soup emitting a strong medicinal aroma.

“These vegetables come from a specially cultivated medicinal herb called Jade Cabbage, which nourishes energy and spirit, strengthening the foundation and replenishing vitality. The meat is from a spirit deer, and the soup is brewed using century-old ginseng combined with black-bone king chicken, all possessing potent blood-nourishing effects,” Xiao Rang explained, noticing Lin Heng’s curiosity.

“Since you have officially started cultivating internal energy, nourishing your qi and blood is essential to accelerate your progress.”

Harnessing the power of heaven and earth accelerated cultivation tremendously—one session equaled the effort of dozens of ordinary cycles. With the aid of these medicinal foods, progress was even faster.

This time, Lin Heng refrained from asking about the price of these ingredients. He sampled each dish and found them exquisitely delicious. Soon, he felt invigorated and full of energy.

Based on the nourishing effects and his deeper understanding of this world, Lin Heng quickly estimated the price range of these ingredients. “The vegetables cost about 120 silver taels per jin, the meat 200 silver taels per jin, and the century-old ginseng 1,500 silver taels per root.”

“Due to my limited appetite, this meal’s portions aren’t large, but the total cost still reached 400 silver taels. Dinner will be at the same standard. Even with a lighter breakfast, daily expenses will exceed a thousand silver taels.”

“In a few years, when I grow bigger and eat more, daily costs may reach two thousand silver taels,” Lin Heng calculated silently.

At a thousand silver taels per day, that amounted to over three hundred thousand silver taels annually; at two thousand, over seven hundred thousand silver taels a year—not counting other medicines and daily necessities.

Conservatively estimating, by the time Lin Heng matured and graduated, the sect would have invested at least five million silver taels in his cultivation resources.

Such investment was made solely because of Lin Heng’s extraordinary talent, with hopes that he would become a pillar supporting the sect’s future.

“I must train diligently,” Lin Heng resolved silently while eating, saying little.

But soon, Lin Heng realized his estimate was too modest. Dinner was even more lavish than lunch because several high-grade medicinal ingredients for nourishment had yet to be gathered at noon or fully cooked. By evening, these were served.

After dinner, Xiao Rang prepared a medicinal bath for Lin Heng. This bath used various rare herbs concocted together. Prolonged soaking in it could strengthen the foundation and promote physical growth. Aside from its high cost, it had no side effects.

If Lin Heng continued at this standard, he reckoned that by graduation, his cultivation resources would consume over ten million silver taels from the sect.

“Don’t overthink it. Cultivating you is a unanimous decision by the sect elders,” Xiao Rang smiled, noticing Lin Heng’s unease in the bath.

“Disciple, you only need to focus on your training.”

Earlier, when Xiao Rang had prepared a Dragon-Tiger Golden Pill for Lin Heng, some subtle measures were necessary. But once Lin Heng attained the innate realm of internal energy, the elders unanimously agreed to allocate the sect’s best resources to him.

As long as he could eat it, all medicinal herbs and meals would be provided without limit.

Half a year of close interaction confirmed Lin Heng’s excellent temperament. Now, with his peerless talent on display, it made perfect sense to invest heavily.

“This debt of gratitude is endless, utterly endless. In the future, I can only devote myself wholly to the sect, even unto death,” Lin Heng thought, suppressing his emotions and beginning to savor the tingling sensation brought by the medicinal bath.

From then on, Lin Heng’s life settled into a highly disciplined routine.

Every morning after waking and washing, he would meditate to refine qi, followed by external martial arts practice. Although he soon brought the three martial arts sets to their pinnacle, he trained daily without fail to strengthen his body.

At night, before sleep, he would soak in the medicinal bath and read a little to calm his spirit.

Each day, Lin Heng could clearly feel his growth. His physique grew stronger, his spirit hardened, and the internal energy accumulated in his dantian and qi sea deepened.

Seven months passed swiftly.

One night, immersed in the bath, Lin Heng concentrated deeply, meditating.

Looking inward, he could clearly see his dantian’s qi sea brimming with pure internal energy, like clouds of essence.

This energy flowed according to the Great Cycle of Circulation. Initially, it was intermittent and disconnected, like a broken stream, but gradually it linked through the entire meridian system, eventually forming a Ouroboros—its head biting its tail.

At this moment, a qualitative transformation occurred.

Lin Heng’s consciousness detached; he no longer guided the qi by will, yet the internal energy circulation within his meridians continued uninterrupted, self-sustaining in an endless cycle.

This self-driven circulation continuously refined his qi and blood, drawing strength from the ubiquitous primordial energy of heaven and earth.

Though this autonomous cultivation progressed at about one-fifth the speed of focused practice, it operated twenty-four hours a day without pause—even during sleep—accumulating substantial power over time.

Achieving this perpetual cycle meant Lin Heng had truly become an innate master.

Not only had his realm advanced, but his combat power was fully sufficient, surpassing initial expectations by a wide margin.

This was due not only to his diligent training but also the abundant cultivation resources provided by the Cloud Sword Palace.

“Excellent. Next, I can begin opening my acupoints,” Lin Heng thought excitedly.

After seven months of strengthening his foundation, he had become a genuine innate master. Now, he could concentrate his internal energy to open over a thousand acupoints throughout his body, transforming each into a mini dantian to store vast internal power, paving his path toward the grandmaster realm.

Five months remained before the formal apprenticeship ceremony, and Lin Heng intended to open as many acupoints as possible before then.