Twin Dimension Yin-Yang Mirror: Attaining immortality through the martial path
Chapter 276 - 243: Cultivation Acceleration, Great Fortune Bestowed

Chapter 276: Chapter 243: Cultivation Acceleration, Great Fortune Bestowed

Green Lady heard Zhou Ping’an’s question.

Her hand paused, holding the tea cup, a hint of helplessness flashing in her eyes. Instead of answering, she asked,

"Ping’an, sometimes you are frighteningly savvy, yet at other times, you seem unclear about some common knowledge.

Have you not noticed that since we joined forces to slay the County Magistrate Tian Shouyi and eventually took over Qingyang City, our cultivation speed has been increasing rapidly?"

As she spoke, Green Lady could hardly control her tone of voice, "Not only you, Lin Huaiyu, and me, but even Tang Lin’er and others under your command have all been cultivating much faster than before.

I won’t hide it from you; it took me two years to go from Blood Renewal to Refinement of one organ...

However, from Refinement of one organ to the Perfection of the Five Viscera, and even breaking through to the True Qi Realm, it only took a mere one month."

"And you, in such a short time, broke through as if drinking water, with no bottlenecks in between, as if aided by heaven. Haven’t you noticed anything yet?"

Something stirred in Zhou Ping’an’s heart, and he thought carefully. Indeed, he had been cultivating very rapidly during this period.

Sometimes, he felt that it was due to the "Karmic Fire Red Lotus Visualization Method" allowing his brain to overclock and significantly enhance his comprehension.

It made sense, indeed.

However, his own cultivation progress, from Blood Renewal to Refinement of Organs, to breaking through to the True Qi Realm, was unreasonably fast and hard to explain.

The replenishment of energy, and this Yin Spirit Bead on his chest, played a huge role in it.

All things considered, the speed of accumulating Blood Essence and breaking through in Refinement of Organs was indeed unusually fast.

"Could it be that the [Gaining Momentum] you mentioned that day plays a significant role in cultivation?"

He hadn’t realized it until he spoke it out loud...

After revealing this, Zhou Ping’an felt that it might really be the case.

Especially when in the Floating Cloud Mountains, Lin Huaiyu got the "Sword of Canghai Codex" that day and instantly mastered the Sword Qi.

On the journey, he inexplicably comprehended the essence of Martial Intent.

Lin Huaiyu followed suit and also grasped a difficult point soon after.

They had just returned to Qingyang City, and before they even settled down,

both of them simultaneously opened the third acupoint of the Minor Heavenly Cycle, the Jade Pillow Acupoint, and their True Qi became even more robust.

All these factors seemed as if they were cheating.

It was indeed suspicious.

If the normal rate of cultivation were like theirs, wouldn’t the world be filled with Divine Martial as common as dogs, and True Martial everywhere?

But that was not the case.

In the last hundred years, there had not been a single well-known case of anyone breaking through to the True Martial Realm.

Even under the True Martial Realm, the stages of Mortal Rank Ninth Refinement were incredibly challenging to cultivate.

The Ninth Refinement Martial Intent could make someone an elder in any of the Four Great Immortal Sects, and the Eighth Refinement of Mastery Realm could allow someone to become a true disciple and dominate upon descending the mountain.

Compared to that, Zhou Ping’an couldn’t believe he was such a genius.

"In the late days of the dynasty, when the spiritual mechanism revives and the mandate of heaven collapses, heroes vie for power...

It’s the worst era for some, but for the ambitious, it’s the best time."

Green Lady sighed.

"Nine Refinements Cultivation Method, True Martial Cultivation Technique, Divine Martial Cultivation of Life...

As long as one secures an early advantage in this great strife, one can rise swiftly—this is what’s called [’the heroes made by the times’]."

"With this, I understand now," Zhou Ping’an’s eyes sparkled.

He knew what the ’ambitious’ Green Lady referred to meant—he could say they had ambition, or more crassly, they were power-seekers.

Such individuals dare to dream and act, never settling for their current situation, and would transform into dragons at the first sign of a storm.

Of course, those who didn’t transform into dragons died in the wilderness.

They are called ’the forerunners to the throne.’

The battle for supremacy in dynasties is such.

So is the cultivation of martial ways.

The essence is largely the same.

Those stories of hiding in the deep mountains, unmoved by worldly events, to become invincible and live eternally are mostly deceptive.

Not to mention ’fate, luck, and life,’ just the resources alone are insufficient to meet the needs of cultivation.

One slow step leads to being slow at every step.

Who knows, stepping out from the mountain, you could be defeated instantly, making years of cultivation nothing but a fool’s hope.

"No, wait, if possessing the authority of a city can secure a great influence to aid in cultivation, why didn’t Tian Shouyi or County Magistrate Li reap much benefit?"

This was clearly evident.

If Tian Shouyi could enhance his cultivation speed several times over, he might have been untouchable when they confronted each other, making Zhou’s approach a suicidal move.

"That’s because their authority was borrowed, given by others, not inherent from within.

Only at crucial moments when the mandate is fragmented and the life force is dissipating can benefits be drawn.

As for the specifics, the sect has detailed records... but unfortunately, my status is still not high enough to access more."

Green Lady sighed again.

"One thing is certain, as long as the Red Lotus Sect incites uprisings throughout the provinces and major sects start deploying elders and disciples to support various forces and stir up warfare, the time will have come.

In the ancient texts and scriptures, this approach has a special term, called [’Supporting the Dragon Court’]."

"Supporting the Dragon Court!"

"Yes, ’Supporting the Dragon Court.’ Of course, whether what is supported is a snake, a python, a flood dragon, or a dragon? It’s usually unclear at the beginning."

Green Lady looked at Zhou Ping’an meaningfully.

She felt something strange as well.

More than anything, she was shocked.

It was not because of how profound Zhou Ping’an’s strength was.

Rather, she discovered that after he seized the actual control of Qingyang City, a series of minor measures he implemented turned out to be quite significant.

Despite having few soldiers and no strategists at all.

Yet, this small, makeshift force, hardly worthy of being called an organization, was able to provide various benefits to those who followed him.

For instance, accelerating cultivation.

And also, augmenting their destiny...

Some could be confirmed, others were merely the beginning signs.

But from any perspective, this all bore some resemblance to the formation of a dragon.

It was quite absurd.

"Based on the truth behind the struggle among the four powers and their efforts to seize momentum and fortune, it is easy to understand why The Red Lotus Sect deployed a contingent to swiftly capture Qingyang City.

Prefect Cui of Guangyun thought he could trap this segment of the Righteous Army by holding the Tiankeng of Lianghe.

He never considered that once Fang Buping led his troops, conquered three counties, and rallied the refugees, they would immediately become a significant force.

By then, whether advancing north to Yunzhou or attacking Jiangzhou, they would possess the strength for battle.

He saw only the immediate and failed to see beyond, inevitably facing a great loss."

Zhou Ping’an looked at this delicate woman who usually played music and discussed poetry with him, who had now completely changed from her usual demeanor, discussing the global situation and analyzing movements of all parties, her plans clear in her mind.

He thought, this persona seemed to be her true nature.

Her former demeanor, pleasing others with charm,

was merely a guise.

There was something Green Lady didn’t make explicitly clear.

But it wasn’t necessary to say it.

It was obvious to everyone.

Following Zhou Ping’an managing Qingyang City, witnessing the potential and the great momentum, was like having a clear path to heaven.

In such a scenario, for The Red Lotus Sect to still desire to seize Qingyang City and take the ripe fruits from her hands, wouldn’t that be utterly intolerable?

There was no need to even consider how deep their personal relationship might be.

Just this common interest alone was enough to tightly bind them together.

Prosper together, suffer together.

Upon this thought, Zhou Ping’an became contemplative, keeping his emotions and thoughts to himself, not asking what Green Lady truly wanted to do eventually.

Future matters would naturally be considered in the future.

Currently, the priority was the situation in Qingyang City.

He believed that Green Lady, with her covert network of informants, pondered this matter even more and in greater detail than he did.

"How should the city’s internal chaos be settled?"

He asked as soon as he thought of it.

In light of Green Lady’s recently displayed resoluteness, knowing that she was definitely on his side at this moment, he saw no harm in seeking her advice.

Sometimes, compatibility does not require showing off one’s prowess.

The most harmonious relationships involve fully deploying the other’s wisdom, allowing everyone around to feel accomplished by demonstrating what they’ve learned.

Just like when having a conversation, making the other person feel most comfortable often involves letting them talk more,

letting them fully express themselves rather than outshining everyone around isn’t not only a way to friendship, but also to leadership.

Well then, Zhou Ping’an realized he was thinking a bit too much.

Some truths are indeed universal.

Green Lady indeed became more excited, her eyes brimming with enthusiasm, unhesitatingly said, "To settle the chaos in Qingyang, it seems difficult, but it’s actually quite simple."

"How so?"

Zhou Ping’an was intrigued.

He set down the teacup in his hand, his hands gently resting on the table.

Green Lady organized her thoughts, "The common people all know about the four great families of Qingyang: Zhang, Wang, Zhao, Xue. Indeed, these four families possess vast wealth and strong martial forces, making them local powerhouses.

However, aside from these four, there is another family that has been overlooked..."

"According to my investigations, this family’s hidden strength is much greater than that of the four prominent families.

In terms of wealth, they might not stand out much, but in terms of martial power, they undoubtedly top Qingyang City."

"Which family?"

Zhou Ping’an’s expression shifted.

He was genuinely surprised.

Not feigned.

"The Chen Family."

Green Lady realized Zhou Ping’an probably hadn’t heard of them and explained, "The reason the Chen Family isn’t well-known is that ten years ago, it didn’t exist at all. Its family head, Chen Dazhong, was a down-and-out scholar who had castrated himself trying to attach himself to the powerful.

Having found no way forward, he relied on his slight cunning to enter the Cui Family as a follower."

"The Cui Family?"

"Yes, the Cui Family, that Cui from Guangyun."

Green Lady nodded, "It’s unclear whether it’s because Chen Dazhong was competent in handling affairs, or due to his genuine loyalty, but eventually, he became the trusted steward of Cui Guangling...

Since the rise of County Magistrate Cui, he too rose with the tide. Not only did he marry several wives, but he also had several ’direct sons’ to continue the family line."