Chapter 70

"Looks like I still need a teacher," Tang Zheng could only reopen the *Dagger Technique* to study it again.

The martial arts techniques he bought were handwritten, with guidance, yet they still presented one problem after another. If it were a random martial arts book from a street stall without a teacher's guidance, he couldn't even imagine how to practice.

In the past, in the game, he could always find a skill mentor to demonstrate any skill, no matter how many times he needed it.

Tang Zheng could always improve his skill proficiency faster and better by observing the mentor's detailed movements.

However, the martial arts techniques on the Starlight Continent were too complex. Finding a teacher who could demonstrate a wide range of techniques would not be easy.

"The guidance in the book only goes through once..." Tang Zheng focused his mind.

As the star power covered the *Dagger Technique*, it once again emitted a faint glow.

The dual star power within Tang Zheng's body surged.

The star power from the starting posture flowed out, just as he had done it himself. Then, the power of the Greater Yin quickly converged the star power, with no issues. The star power extended out like a compressed spring, rapidly and explosively...

"Still no problem!" Up to this point, everything was the same as what he had understood.

However, when the star power extended, Tang Zheng noticed something was wrong.

The power that extended explosively was not the power of the Greater Yang, but the power of the Greater Yin!

"Why?" Before Tang Zheng could think it through, the surging power of the Greater Yang burst out, pushing the power of the Greater Yin to the sides, forming a star power circuit.

So that's how it is!

It turned out that the second move of the *Dagger Technique*, "Rushing Crown," was a two-stage technique.

The power of the Greater Yin and the Greater Yang rapidly and consecutively inflicted two damages on the target, then immediately formed a star power circuit through the impact of the Greater Yang on the Greater Yin to complete the move.

"I seem to understand it now." Tang Zheng closed the *Dagger Technique* and tried it again.

Although there was guidance from the handwritten technique, he still felt that the skill mentors in the game were more useful.

The second attempt still failed. After the power of the Greater Yin was retracted, it immediately extended out like a spring. Because the nature of the star power extension was very different from the power of the Greater Yang, his "Rushing Crown" move, although it could be retracted, had a force that was only comparable to the starting posture, far less powerful than the impact of the power of the Greater Yang he had used earlier.

"Wow, it's much harder to practice skills than in the game!" Tang Zheng tried several more times but still couldn't fully master it.

It wasn't that the force of the move was insufficient, but the star power circuit formed was very scattered, and after a lot of star power was dissipated, the move failed to retract, leaving a gap where the old power was exhausted and the new power had not yet been generated.

Without a skill mentor, Tang Zheng's practice of martial arts techniques was not going smoothly.

Fortunately, he received an unexpected surprise in another area.

When practicing "Rushing Crown," he could make the star tide rise continuously, generating two strands of star power each time!

After these dozen or so attempts, the star power in his body had increased by twenty strands.

Almost every one or two "Rushing Crown" moves could add two new strands of star power to the star tide.

"Skill proficiency is improving slowly, but the blue bar is rising quickly!" Tang Zheng smiled to himself, then swallowed another Brown Marsh Pill.

With the help of the Purple Jade True Phoenix Pendant and the Brown Marsh Pill, his star power regeneration speed increased again...

After practicing the starting posture and "Rushing Crown" seventy to eighty times, the star power in his body had increased by over a hundred strands!

The only problem was that he was very tired.

He felt drained after every five or six practices and had to stop to rest before continuing.

"Alright, a hundred times!" Tang Zheng finally finished a hundred "Rushing Crown" moves, wiped the sweat from his forehead, sheathed the dagger, and sighed, "With medicine, accessories, and good martial arts techniques, but the distance to the second star is still very far!"

...

The next morning, the proxy purchases continued at the Treasure Pavilion.

Ban Yilou was also enthusiastic, even moving a small stool to sit at the entrance, enthusiastically promoting the items his friend, who had forged Tang Zheng's dagger, had entrusted him to sell over the years.

Tang Zheng ignored him and walked straight into the Treasure Pavilion, handing the three account books he had received from Lan Yan to Tang Xiaotang.

He didn't say a single extra word.

From what Lan Yan had said, Tang Zheng had indirectly learned about Lan Shaoye—this person was meticulous, very rational, and could quickly sort out priorities and perfectly handle any factors unfavorable to him. Apart from his one flaw of being overly proud, there was nothing else to criticize.

Therefore, the scattered "one-pot plan" that he had overheard Lan Yan and Feng Le discussing would definitely be overturned by Lan Shaoye after the incident.

"Uh, Master..." Tang Xiaotang and the others were flipping through the accounts, becoming more and more shocked. Finally, they closed the accounts, and their breathing became unstable, "Where did you get such important things?"

Tang Zheng smiled indifferently, "If they're important, the person who lost them must be very anxious!"

"Definitely anxious and furious!" Tang Zixie's face was already full of schadenfreude.

Two of the account books were transaction records between the Hidden Blue Manor and two sects.

The other one contained the real information of all the shops on West Street!

"But," Tang Xiaotang looked at the cover of the account book, "Why is there blood?"

"Hmm... there was indeed a small conflict." Tang Zheng touched his nose.

"A small conflict?" Tang Xiaotang asked suspiciously.

"Don't believe me? Ask Ah Zhi?" Tang Zheng pointed to the grandfather and grandson who had just entered.

Ah Zhi's face was dark, and he huffed, ignoring Tang Zheng.

The old man behind Ah Zhi smiled and greeted Tang Zheng, "Did you have a pleasant night?"

"Cough, cough, cough..." Tang Zheng didn't know what Ah Zhi had told the old man, so he could only answer, "It was okay, just fine."

"Do you still have the mood to joke?" Ah Zhi glared at him, "Do you know that the blood trail left on our star chart by Feng Le's talent wasn't just close..."

"Ha, ha, ha, ha..." The old man placed a hand on Ah Zhi's shoulder. Ah Zhi looked back at the old man, huffed again, and didn't say anything more.

Tang Zheng only knew that the blood trail left by Feng Le's talent, "My father is Li Gang," could make anyone from the Heavenly Mandate Sect with the same star chart approach them within a hundred steps, and they would know that Feng Le was killed by them.

However, from Ah Zhi's words, it seemed there was more to it?

Tang Zheng's gaze turned to the old man.

"Ha, ha, ha..." The old man laughed again, "Come to me tonight!"

Tang Zheng was taken aback, "But, I have to return to Tang Family Castle in the afternoon to talk to the castle lord. I don't know when I can return to Wulong Town..."

"Are you looking for my father?" Tang Xiaotang asked, "You don't need to go back. He will come to the Treasure Pavilion tomorrow morning!" She then leaned in and asked, "Hee, what's the matter?"

Tang Zixie laughed, "Not proposing to our little Tang sister, are you?"

Tang Xiaotang pushed Tang Zixie hard, "Looking for death! I said, no marriage before the Seventh Star!"

"By the time you reach the Seventh Star, you'll be an old lady."

"So what if I'm an old lady?"

"Who would want to marry you then?"

Tang Zheng rubbed his forehead. He needed to find Tang Boyuan to inform him about killing Feng Le, but how did the topic veer so far off?

Tang Xiaotang and the others were joking in the Treasure Pavilion, so Tang Zheng simply stepped out.

He still had a shopping list in his pocket.

It was quite amusing. Most of the items on Lan Yan's shopping list were from the inner chamber of the Treasure Pavilion, meaning that if Tang Zheng hadn't killed him last night, he would have come here today to do business with him.

Tang Zheng had also looked at the list on the way to the Treasure Pavilion this morning. He had seen many of the items in the inner chamber, but a few were completely unfamiliar to him.

"Old Ban..." Tang Zheng found Ban Yilou as soon as he went out, pulling him aside from his enthusiastic sales pitch, "Help me check what's on this list."

"Go away, don't disturb my business. Blocking someone's income is like killing..." Ban Yilou's mustache flared up.

"Buy, buy, buy, all bought!" Tang Zheng immediately stopped Ban Yilou's complaints, "Quickly, check this list! Are they all in the Treasure Pavilion?"

Ban Yilou finally took the list...

When he saw the items listed, his eyebrows raised.

Tang Zheng, seeing his indecipherable expression, asked, "Not there?"

"There are, and there aren't. The items at the top, like Double-Blossom Dew and finely ground Jing Stone, need to be shipped from different Treasure Pavilions!" Ban Yilou handed the shopping list back to Tang Zheng, "But, whose shopping list is this? Why would they need these items?"

"Oh, is there a problem with these items?" Tang Zheng smiled. He wasn't afraid if there was a problem with the items; he was afraid if there wasn't!

"They can only be used for one purpose..." Ban Yilou said.

"What purpose?" Tang Zheng guessed that this list was given to Lan Yan by Lan Shaoye. Knowing the purpose of these items might reveal what Lan Shaoye was planning.

"They are all repair materials!" Ban Yilou answered seriously, "To repair a pendant called 'Rain Flower Seal'!"

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