Chapter 5

Zhang Ruochen's gaze was sharp, and with a firm resolve, he said, "Mother, don't worry! I will definitely cultivate to become a powerful warrior as soon as possible and protect you with my own strength."

Holding the Blood Pill, Zhang Ruochen returned to his room and continued to work hard on his cultivation.

"Madam, it is said that warriors not only need to consume Blood Pills but also must cultivate martial techniques. Only by possessing martial techniques can one open the meridians," the maid Yun'er said.

Lin Fei, watching Zhang Ruochen's departing back, pursed her lips and nodded bitterly, saying, "I know! But even the lowest-grade martial technique costs more than five hundred silver coins, which I cannot afford with my current financial situation. Moreover, the Queen and the Imperial Preceptor are now in charge of the government. The Queen would never allow Ruochen to go to the 'Library Hall' to receive martial techniques and cultivation methods. It seems there is only one way!"

The maid Yun'er said, "Madam, are you going to seek help from the Lin family? But three years ago, you had a complete falling out with them. Would they give the Ninth Prince a cultivation method?"

"As long as they are willing to give Ruochen a cultivation method, I am willing to kneel and apologize," Lin Fei said, tears streaming down her face as she thought of some past events.

"But it wasn't your fault back then..." the maid Yun'er sighed softly.

...

The inner space of the Time Crystal Stone was rich in spiritual energy, with a concentration about twice that of the outside world.

In Yunwu County, if the spiritual energy concentration of famous mountains and rivers reached 1.5 times, it would already be considered a cultivation treasure land, and would be fiercely contested by various major families.

Sitting in the center of the inner space, Zhang Ruochen took out a jade bottle containing ten Blood Pills, poured one out, and sniffed it lightly.

Although the "Blood Pill" was made from the blood of savage beasts, it did not have a bloody smell but rather a faint fragrance.

The alchemist had removed the bloody smell from the Blood Pill and added tiger lily grass and mandala flowers.

Long-term consumption of Blood Pills not only provides warriors with a continuous supply of physical strength but also improves their meridians, bones, and organs, making their bodies stronger.

"Just a first-grade Blood Pill," Zhang Ruochen nodded slightly, muttering to himself, "With my current cultivation, a first-grade Blood Pill is sufficient."

Zhang Ruochen swallowed a Blood Pill and immediately sealed the jade bottle, placing it on the stone platform.

Under the stimulation of true qi, the blood energy of the Blood Pill quickly melted, providing Zhang Ruochen with a continuous supply of physical strength.

"Although I have reached the early stage of the Yellow Extreme Realm and become a warrior, this body is too weak and cannot compare to other warriors. I must strengthen my body, or I will suffer a great disadvantage when fighting with warriors of the same realm."

For warriors, not only must they cultivate true qi, but they must also cultivate martial techniques.

"Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm!"

The image of this profound palm technique appeared in Zhang Ruochen's mind, ranking among the top three in the martial technique secret manuals in his memory, perfectly suitable for his current cultivation.

He spread his legs, lowered his waist, filled his legs with true qi to stabilize his body, and slowly raised his arms, beginning to strike his palms according to a certain profound pattern.

In his mind, he imagined himself as an ancient divine elephant with boundless strength and a deep abyss dragon, using all his strength in each strike, as if trying to unleash every bit of strength in his body.

Each palm strike pulled his muscles, and the true qi in his body merged with his muscles and bones, causing them to transform, becoming stronger and more resilient, even fusing with the true qi.

The Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm has thirteen palm techniques and is classified as a lower-grade king-level martial technique.

To be precise, if one can cultivate the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm to the thirteenth palm, it would be comparable to a divine-level martial technique.

Cultivation methods and martial techniques are divided into five levels: human, spirit, ghost, king, and divine.

The first palm of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm, "Savage Elephant Charging the Ground," when successfully cultivated, has the power of a lower-grade human-level martial technique.

The second palm of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm, "Flying Dragon in the Sky," when successfully cultivated, has the power of a middle-grade human-level martial technique.

The third palm of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm, "Dragon Elephant Returning to the Field," when successfully cultivated, has the power of an upper-grade human-level martial technique.

The fourth palm of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm, "Dragon Elephant Shadow," when successfully cultivated, has the power of a lower-grade spirit-level martial technique.

...

The thirteenth palm of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm, "Dragon Elephant Destroying the World," when successfully cultivated, has the power of a divine-level martial technique, with unimaginable force.

The first few palms of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm are considered low-level martial techniques with not much power. Moreover, the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm is extremely difficult to cultivate, and very few people can reach the seventh palm.

After the seventh palm, each palm requires a large amount of time and effort to cultivate. If one cannot withstand the extremely powerful and yang energy within the body, they might even burn to death.

Due to these reasons, the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm is only considered a lower-grade king-level martial technique.

Although the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm is very difficult to cultivate, it is perfectly suitable for Zhang Ruochen's current cultivation, allowing him to strengthen his body in a short period of time.

"Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm, first palm, Savage Elephant Charging the Ground."

Zhang Ruochen first stood in a horse stance, then quickly stepped forward, rushing out and rapidly striking the palm technique.

Still as a mountain, moving like a savage elephant.

He practiced repeatedly until his true qi was exhausted, then wiped the sweat from his brow, sat down, and used the martial mark on his forehead to absorb the spiritual energy in the inner space of the Time Crystal Stone, converting it into a continuous supply of true qi.

After nine days of cultivation in the inner space of the Time Crystal Stone, he finally successfully cultivated the first palm of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm, "Savage Elephant Charging the Ground."

Nine days in the inner space of the Time Crystal Stone were only three days in the outside world.

"I wonder how strong my first palm of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm is with my current cultivation."

Zhang Ruochen walked out of the inner space of the Time Crystal Stone, came to the backyard, and stood in the center of the courtyard, channeling true qi into his legs.

"Savage Elephant Charging the Ground."

He stepped forward in a rhythmic pattern, suddenly rushing out.

As he moved, a powerful force surged from his legs, passing through his waist and spine, surging to his back and shoulders, and erupting from his arms.

Although it was just one palm technique, it mobilized the strength of every muscle in his body, resulting in a powerful burst of energy.

"Bang!"

His palms struck a half-man-tall, thousand-pound stone, and he immediately retracted his palms, stepping back to his original position along the same footprints.

Zhang Ruochen looked at the thousand-pound stone and saw two shallow palm-shaped indentations on its surface. The bottom of the stone had sunk into the soil by about two centimeters.

Zhang Ruochen was quite satisfied with the power of this palm.

Although the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm is currently a lower-grade human-level martial technique, it is more advanced than other lower-grade human-level martial techniques, and the power it unleashes is even greater.

"The higher the grade of the martial technique, the harder it is to cultivate. If I were to directly cultivate a spirit-level martial technique now, I would not be able to succeed in nine days; it would take at least half a year. Moreover, with the amount of true qi in my body, I would not be able to use a spirit-level martial technique."

The time spent cultivating martial techniques and cultivation methods must be reasonably arranged.

If one focuses too much on cultivating martial techniques and neglects cultivation methods, their cultivation realm will progress slowly.

If one focuses too much on cultivating methods and neglects martial techniques, they will suffer a great disadvantage in combat.

In any case, by successfully cultivating the first palm of the Dragon Elephant Bodhi Palm, Zhang Ruochen finally had a basic self-defense capability after eight hundred years.

In these nine days, Zhang Ruochen's cultivation had also improved greatly, and the true qi in his qi pool was now full, allowing him to begin opening his second meridian.

However, to open a meridian, one must consume a Bone Washing Liquid. The Queen had only given Zhang Ruochen one dose of Bone Washing Liquid, which was used when opening his first meridian.

How could he obtain a second dose of Bone Washing Liquid, or even more?

"Ninth Prince, Madam is looking for you everywhere. What are you doing here?" The maid Yun'er, seeing Zhang Ruochen standing in the center of the courtyard, curiously walked over.

Yun'er was the only maid by Lin Fei and Zhang Ruochen's side, about seventeen or eighteen years old, quite beautiful, with bright eyes and a pointed chin.

Zhang Ruochen walked to Yun'er's opposite side, blocking her view to prevent her from seeing the two handprints on the thousand-pound stone in the distance, and asked with concern, "Yun'er, how is the injury on your arm?"

Yun'er shook her head lightly and said, "It takes a hundred days to heal a broken bone. It will probably take two or three months to recover."

The injury on her arm was caused by the Eighth Prince's palm strike a few days ago, which broke her bones. For a maid like her, even if she were beaten to death, the Eighth Prince would not be held responsible.

In a world where the strong rule, the weak have no status.

Zhang Ruochen said, "Why don't you buy a Bone Healing Ointment?"

Yun'er, enduring the pain in her arm, smiled bitterly, "The cheapest Bone Healing Ointment costs two hundred silver coins, which we cannot afford. Ninth Prince, it's already good that you care about us. Come with me to see Madam; we are leaving the palace today."

Zhang Ruochen followed Yun'er, curious, and asked, "Leaving the palace? Where are we going?"

"To see Ningshan! You haven't seen her in a long time, right? You must be very happy," Yun'er said with a bright smile, staring at Zhang Ruochen.

Every time "Ningshan" was mentioned, he would definitely blush and become shy like a young girl.

"Who is Ningshan?" Zhang Ruochen wanted to ask but immediately swallowed the words.

Clearly, the Zhang Ruochen who died