Chapter 3

Zhu Yu experienced the wonders of cultivating immortality. Zhu Yu, with his extraordinary wisdom, was not like the previous owner of this body, who only knew how to brag and chase girls, being lazy and vulgar, lacking ambition, and living a life of aimless confusion. Zhu Yu was exceptionally intelligent, planning and acting with great deliberation, meticulously arranging every step. Once he was fully committed to something, his dedication and focus were truly formidable.

Through cultivation and constant study of ancient texts, Zhu Yu discovered that his body had excellent potential. If classified according to the current standards of spiritual roots in the cultivation world, Zhu Yu should be just below the heavenly spiritual root. The only flaw was that two of his eight extraordinary meridians were severely blocked, making it extremely difficult to cultivate the "Longevity Scripture." However, the "Pangu Diagram" seemed to have a unique effect. Cultivating by visualizing this diagram seemed to ignore the existence of meridians. As long as the diagram operated, the body could continuously absorb primordial energy.

Even more astonishingly, Zhu Yu found that with daily cultivation, the blocked meridians showed signs of becoming more畅通. Although they were far from fully recovering, the spiritual energy could already slowly circulate within the meridians. Despite this, Zhu Yu thoroughly researched ancient texts but still could not determine the cause. He knew his current knowledge was insufficient, so he did not dwell on it, focusing his limited energy on the most important matters, which was his way of doing things.

Postnatal cultivation is divided into nine realms. Whether a cultivator of qi or a physical cultivator, postnatal cultivation primarily focuses on the physical body. Zhu Yu's cultivation progressed rapidly. A few days ago, he had already broken through to the third realm of postnatal cultivation, and his cultivation continued to surge, now almost reaching the late stage of the third realm.

The first three realms of postnatal cultivation are called "Exercising Strength," "Internal Fortification," and "Divine Strength." The first realm focuses on cultivating the skin and muscles. Once a breakthrough is achieved, the physical strength greatly increases, far surpassing ordinary people. The second realm, "Internal Fortification," involves cultivating the bones, membranes, and internal organs. Once this realm is broken through, the body's functions immediately surpass the ordinary, with strength increasing even more, and the body becoming immune to cold and heat, free from illness, and with an extended lifespan.

Ordinary people consider living to a hundred years as a long life. However, for cultivators, even those at the second realm of postnatal cultivation, living over a hundred years is easy. After "Internal Fortification" comes "Divine Strength." When the skin, muscles, bones, membranes, and internal organs are all cultivated to an extremely powerful state, the body's functions will rapidly improve, naturally generating extraordinary strength. In the "Divine Strength" realm, some exaggerated physical cultivators are said to have the strength to lift thousands of pounds with one arm. This number is enough to make Zhu Yu, a commoner from Earth, gape in amazement. Li Yuanba, the first hero of the Sui and Tang dynasties, had boundless divine strength, capable of lifting a thousand-pound stone lion with each arm, which was already an unparalleled and remarkable martial expert.

However, if Li Yuanba were placed in the vast world of Huaxia, his strength would be insignificant, not even comparable to a novice cultivator. Currently, Zhu Yu has reached the late stage of the "Divine Strength" realm. As a cultivator of qi, he cannot be as exaggerated as a physical cultivator, but his single-arm strength definitely exceeds five hundred pounds. He can uproot a tree as thick as a bowl with both hands, which should be around a thousand pounds of force.

For Zhu Yu, the subsequent realms he needs to break through will enter the "Insight" realm. "Insight," "Subtlety," "Flexibility," "Spiritual Connection," "Spiritual Awareness," and "Half-Step Innate" are the last five realms. Cultivating the physical body is not just about cultivating brute strength but also learning to use that strength effectively. Zhu Yu summarized it in eight words: "Exercise the body, understand the body!"

Zhu Yu is no longer a novice in cultivation; at least, he has a basic understanding. His life is now extremely fulfilling, and cultivation is just one part of it. In the cultivation world, everything is convenient. In Building 103, which is a dormitory for commoners, the academy provides a large-screen "Xinguī" for every five single-person dormitories.

Through this device, Zhu Yu can easily access cultivation knowledge and basic materials. Zhu Yu did not forget that he was a disciple of the "Spiritual Talisman Hall." In fact, since he saw the "Wind Paper Crane," "Sound Xinguī," and "Message Xinguī," he became extremely interested in "spiritual talismans." With his super scholar's wisdom, the conditions for studying "spiritual talismans" were unparalleled. In just a few days, he had figured out most of the large-screen "Xinguī" in the dormitory building.

Moreover, he fully utilized his ability to summarize and simplify, transforming his understanding and learning methods of "spiritual talismans" into "phantom talismans." These were the crystallization of a top scholar's wisdom, and knowledge is money in any era. The wisdom of Zhu Yu was not wasted. He fully utilized his other talent for talking and persuading, selling these "phantom talismans" to the lower-level disciples of the cultivation classes.

Initially, Zhu Yu only tried it out, but the results were unexpectedly good. He quickly improved his strategy, focusing on low-level talismans, especially the key points of the low-level talisman class exams. Zhu Yu, a genius cultivated under the evil examination education system on Earth, was adept at targeting key points, guessing the test setter's intentions, and conducting intensive training. His "phantom talismans" quickly gained a market, selling hundreds in a week, and various crystals and other items flowed in. Of course, all of this was done secretly. Although Zhu Yu was not particularly low-key, he knew his current situation and decided to be more discreet.

...

It was another lecture by the master of the "Spiritual Talisman Hall" at the South Sea Academy. At the South Sea Cultivation Academy, disciples usually cultivate individually, but each week, the various halls have a master lecture, a system designed for the academy's innate cultivators to teach and answer questions for the lower-level disciples. Generally, lower-level disciples are not allowed to miss these lectures. For intermediate and advanced disciples, the academy has no special requirements, as some elite disciples have already reached the "half-step innate" realm, and ordinary masters might not be able to teach them much. Besides, elite disciples usually have their own personal masters, and they can directly consult their masters for any doubts, which is far more efficient than a lecture with hundreds or even thousands of people.

Zhu Yu had missed the master lectures for two consecutive weeks, and the hall had already issued a warning to his dormitory. The topic of this master lecture was "In-depth Analysis of the Swastika Spiritual Talisman." The swastika symbol is a more advanced spiritual talisman among the basic talismans, widely used in the forging of magical artifacts, puppet making, and alchemy. Zhu Yu had been studying this symbol recently and had gained some insights. However, he felt his research was not thorough enough, and he was eager to listen to a lecture by a senior cultivator.

At the hour of Chen, Zhu Yu dressed in his robes, with a storage bag at his waist and a peachwood talisman sword reduced to the size of a sewing needle hidden in his palm, he set off for the "Spiritual Talisman Hall" Lecture Hall No. 1. He deliberately arrived a bit early this time.

However, when he arrived, Lecture Hall No. 1 was already packed with people, and Zhu Yu noticed disciples in red robes. These were the senior brothers from the Red Dust Apartments, who were rarely seen at ordinary lectures. Despite being mentally prepared, Zhu Yu still felt uncomfortable as he entered, feeling the intense gazes of the surrounding people.

"Zhu Yu is here, hey, this guy finally shows up! Ha, missing two weeks, his injuries must be healed, and he's back in the game!" Someone in the crowd spoke in a shrill voice, followed by a burst of laughter, and he instantly became the center of attention.

Zhu Yu felt a bit awkward but could only pretend to be calm and composed as he walked in.

"Hey, Master Zhu, you've been away for a while, and your temper has grown, learning to ignore people!" Zhu Yu frowned and stopped. He could not move forward because a tall, thin cultivator with a sallow face and a sinister smile was standing in front of him.

The man grinned and looked at Zhu Yu with a wicked expression, saying, "Master Zhu, this path is blocked!"

Zhu Yu sized up the man, and a name popped into his head: "Hou Decai!"

A scum among the low-level cultivators of the Spiritual Talisman Hall, with a despicable character, bullying the weak and fearing the strong. When Zhu Yu was bragging in the past, he believed it and tried to get close to Zhu Yu, even offering to lick his feet. When Zhu Yu was pursuing Yu Tian, he willingly played the supporting role and gave Zhu Yu many bad ideas. Today, he was the first to turn against him and start trouble?

"Zhu Yu, take down Hou, use your family's legendary 'Heavenly Seal' treasure to crush him!" Someone started trouble, and others joined in, creating a commotion.

This was the typical style of the 103 dormitory building. The senior brothers from the Red Dust Apartments and Tiger Mountain Apartments were all solemn and dignified when they engaged in duels. Only the 103 dormitory building was like a market, with everyone acting like gangsters.

Zhu Yu frowned, thinking it was no wonder that many senior brothers in the South Sea Academy looked down on Building 103. It seemed that not only were the disciples of 103 weak in cultivation, but their quality was also truly disappointing.

"Monkey, don't go too far. This is a master lecture, and dueling is forbidden!" Zhu Yu did not speak, but a voice came from behind him.

Zhu Yu turned and saw a quiet young cultivator standing behind him, wearing a black robe. His voice was slightly hoarse but very clear.

Zhu Yu recognized him. Shi Xiaogang, his neighbor, was a down-to-earth person who cultivated diligently. His family seemed to be very poor, and he was usually introverted. Because they were neighbors, he and Zhu Yu had a good relationship.