by Tinalynge
Hearing her grandfather’s words, Yong Meilin felt great pain. She knew that her success within the family was mainly due to her beauty. She could use it as a way to make the customers pay an extra amount of money just so that she would notice them.
As she considered her rank within the family, Yong Meilin was astonished to hear what her grandfather had said to her. To him, she was but a beautiful woman while Xu Min was a very important person. The young man was capable of defeating opponents stronger than him and possessed a small snake-like creature as a companion. Everything about him was mysterious, but his strength was true. To think he had reached the rank of a One-Star Warrior already, it was obvious that he had great talent. He had such overwhelming power which already promised a bright future. The Yong family leader did everything in his power to ensure that this young man stayed with their Alluring Treasure Pavilion, even if it meant that he had to sell out his dear grandchild.
While this conversation was going on, Xu Min had no idea how valued he was by the family leader. However, he was incredibly satisfied with the training he had gone through in the morning. His body and Qi pool had been pushed to their limits. Although he did not have sufficient Qi to take on more opponents, he was already pleased with the amount he took down. Now, it was time to train his physique.
Starting as usual with his vertical pushups on one finger at a time, he started counting. By the time he reached one thousand, he would switch to another finger. His arm and finger strength was astonishing. Although he was not bulky in any way, the lean and toned muscles beneath the skin were something not to be underestimated.
After having trained his fingers and arms, he went to strengthen his leg muscles before he continued with the stomach and the back. As the evening air started to become chilled, Xu Min finally finished his physical training. With an exhausted body. He went to the hot bath within the and soothed his tired muscles. With a sigh of comfort, he managed to stay in the water for an entire hour.
Having finished his bath, it was now time for a quick meal before Xu Min once more started refining the essence of the heavens and the earth. Looking at the medicine box, Xu Min quickly decided not to use a medicinal pill every single day. Doing so was likely to have the opposite effect. Although pills were beneficial, the body required a balance of energies.
Coming to this conclusion, Xu Min sat down on the bed. He closed his eyes as he started to breathe steadily and refined the essence of the heavens and the earth.
While Xu Min was completely focused on his training, he was unaware that the entire Ri Chu City had started to become abuzz because of him and Yong Meilin. Yong Meilin was the woman that any young master wished to marry. As they heard that she had already picked a young man whom no one knew anything about, they all felt cheated and wronged.
The rumors went as far as to say that Yong Meilin had walked hand in hand with the young man to.the Divine Flower Garden and gone to eat at their restaurant in a private booth.
The more rumors these men heard, the more agitated they became. They all wished to duel this young man and prove that they were far stronger, richer, and more handsome. Unfortunately, no one knew anything about this young man. Those who sent challenges to the Alluring Treasure Pavilion were told that Yong Meilin’s love was something that could not be determined by a duel but her only feelings alone.
This reply made the young men grow even more desperate as to at least see this young man whom she had thrown her love towards. But, the young man had hidden himself within the Alluring Treasure Pavilion. Even the guards who usually sold information could only tell about the duel he had had against other guards. As the days passed by, no new information surfaced. It was as if the young man had completely vanished from the face of the earth.
Truthfully, Xu Min had not vanished. As a matter of fact, he was unaware of the many challenges which had been sent his way just as he was unaware that he and Yong Meilin had been recognised as a couple.
During the days, Yong Meilin usually fled to his courtyard where she would sit still and observe him train. Yong Meilin knew that this would increase the rumors, but she did not care. She was hurt that her grandfather only saw her as a woman, only usable to attract other men. She was partly blaming Xu Min for being too overwhelmingly strong.
That was the start; however as she ended up within his courtyard, she soon found that this young man was not just talented. The reason how he had managed to get this far was not due to a talent mixed with medicinal pills such as she had expected. No, this was due to the hard work Xu Min put into every waking moment of the day.
Seeing how hard he was working, Yong Meilin was thinking for a bit before she left the courtyard. She headed to the Yong family’s library. What she was about to do was something she had never considered before. Seeing Xu Min work this hard and seeing how her grandfather valued an expert such as he, she decided to try out cultivating on her own.
Borrowing three books on the topic, Yong Meilin felt ecstatic as she rushed back to Xu Min’s courtyard. As she arrived, she noticed that the young man had just finished one set of exercises. He was standing in the shade under a tree and wiped his bare upper body from sweat. At first, the young woman had found it incredibly embarrassing to see so much bare skin. As the days had gone by. it had turned normal. Now she even appreciated the sight.
Sitting down in the sunshine on a small patch of grass, the young woman looked through the books she had found. All of them explained the very basics of the breathing exercise needed to refine the essence of the heavens and the earth.
Taking the position the book recommended, Yong Meilin closed her eyes and slowly started breathing in and out. If someone were to refine the essence of the heavens and the earth, one had to completely empty their head and feel the air around them. Within the air, multiple energy ripples were constantly crashing against the skin of the cultivator. The veins, pores and meridians all absorbed the energies brought them into their bodies where they would constantly rotate it throughout. They rotated the energy through the meridians where all impurities would be breathed out until only the purest Qi was left behind inside the body.
Although she read the text, Yong Meilin was not able to fully understand it. While a few specs of golden light appeared around her, it was nothing compared to those that appeared around Xu Min while he was training.
The young man was doing some stretching as he had just finished training his legs. He was astonished when he saw Yong Meilin cultivate. She was fairly old to be starting her training, but Xu Min could not help but feel that it was admirable that she even attempted. Stopping his stretches, he moved towards her where he placed his hands on her shoulders.
At first she tensed up, but as he gently massaged her shoulders, a sense of calmness appeared in her. She soon felt comfort and lost herself in this feeling. Without noticing it, the golden specks around her increased in quantity and she managed to cultivate on her own. Seeing this, a gentle smile appeared on Xu Min’s face as he returned to the shade below the tree. He started another set of exercises and trained his stomach and back muscles.
From time to time, Xu Min would walk over to Yong Meilin. With a tender expression on his face would he teach her how to cultivate.
At first, Xu Min thought that it was a fleeting idea the young woman had found. However, she appeared within his courtyard cultivating day after day. She appeared at dawn and did not leave before dusk. Every day spent on cultivating, the two youngsters stood together within the courtyard, both practicing hard in their own ways.
No one apart from Xu Min knew that Yong Meilin had started cultivating. Now, she had already started to feel a difference in her everyday life. Although it was only a little, the energy she absorbed managed to change her perspective on things. She became much calmer than she had been before. She also felt that things were much easier to handle now than ever before. She knew exactly how to deal with people and her entire personality changed from the haughty young woman to an elegant young lady.
Sensing the change in the woman, Xu Min could not help but smile as he too remembered how he had started training when he was just a small child. He recalled how the energy had changed his view on the world. He felt melancholic as he remembered how simple his life had been back then, especially when he remembered his cherished memories of him and Xu Wu.
While Xu Min and Yong Meilin spent their days together within his courtyard, the month quickly passed. The time that Xu Min had been banned from the Halls of Champions came to an end. The young man was ecstatic as he woke up. For once, he was not going to start the morning with physical training. Instead, he was going to eat a medicinal pill and prepare for the fights in the evening.
Chapter 36 - Challenges
The night was chilly and there was no moon. Only the light of the stars cascaded down towards the buildings. The majority of these buildings were dark and closed of for the night; however, one of these buildings was different from the others. One of the building was filled with lights and cheerful banter. Getting closer, one could see that it was a large hall-like building. Citizens were constantly moving both in and out. Some were cheerful and delighted while others were discouraged and downcast.
Making his way to this building, Xu Min and Yong Meilin slowly walked side by side. Their presence caused everyone around them to gossip and get out of their way. Their eyes looked at the two youngsters who were talking together in a comfortable and intimate way. They had gotten used to each other since they had trained by each other’s side for a full month.
“Is it him?”
“He isn’t as handsome as the young master from the Wei family,”
“Look at that, they are so intimate,”
“Young Lady Yong Meilin is as beautiful as ever.”
“I heard that they have been spending each and every day together the last month from dawn to dusk.”
Gossip was floating in the air, and for the first time ever were the two youngsters aware of the gossip which had flourished over the past month. While Xu Min found it rather fun, Yong Meilin was fully embarrassed as her face turned red.
While Xu Min found her reaction quite curious, he could not help but laugh gently as he patted her head. It was a habit he had learnt from the time when he had helped her train her inner energies.
“Ignore them,” Xu Min said with a gentle voice as he looked around. He found both admiring gazes and eyes filled with hatred and jealousy. Most men were glaring daggers at Xu Min who managed to completely ignore it.
Yong Meilin slowly nodded her head. With a long sigh, she managed to once more control her emotions. Although she acted fully in control, her cheeks had gotten a red flush which suited her perfectly.
“So Xu Min, which one are you going to fight? The One-Star Warriors are not challenging enough, are they?” Yong Meilin asked curiously. She looked around the multiple arenas within the room and Xu Min shrugged carelessly.
He was filled with energy once more. The energy came from having eaten and digested a medicinal pill. He could not wait to try and see who he should battle. Thinking about it, he had to agree with Yong Meilin that the One-Star Warriors were not enough of a challenge.
The young man went to sign up. This time, he signed up for the Two-Star Warriors. As he did, a large group of people stepped up to the sign ups and quickly signed up. The group of Two-Star Warriors had grown to be the largest group in the entire Hall of Champions.
Many of the viewers went and stared at the rings for the Two-Star Warriors. Many of them were curious as to how dangerous this young man truly was. Many wished to be able to mock him, a One-Star Warrior who wished to fight the Two-Star Warriors.
“Come on! Let me deal with all those stupid humans who look down on you!’ The snake around his neck suddenly said. Xu Min felt the killing intent rise in the small snake’s mind and Xu Min gently patted the snake’s head.
‘If you can defeat four Two-Star Warriors then I’ll actually approve of you a little more,’ the snake said magnanimously. To be honest, the snake had long since approved of the young man. He was being spoiled even more now than he had ever been with his father. This young man clearly felt some kind of affection. Being petted by the young man, fed all these different foods, and never hearing any complaints made Cao Cao absolutely content. He had long since accepted the blood bond he had together with Xu Min.
Xu Min and Yong Meilin went towards the large wall which the matchups were shown. He was excited to see that he was fighting fairly soon. Looking at the surroundings, he could not help but laugh.
The last time he had been here, multiple warriors had challenged him because of some inappropriate words he had said about Yong Meilin. Yet only a month afterwards, he was at this arena once more, he one who followed behind him was Yong Meilin.
The young woman herself seemingly found it just as comical as a small giggle escaped her lips. She looked at Xu Min with a gentle smile on her face.
Although she had disliked Xu Min from the start since he was not easy to wrap around her little finger, she had found that this young man was hardworking but also sincere. When she did her best to train, he would gently and naturally assist her in doing it the most optimal way. He showed her a friendliness she had never expected before.
Thinking like this, she was now grateful to her grandfather for giving her this task. She had learnt a lot about herself and a lot about Xu Min. For the first time in her life, she felt like she had found a friend who purely cared about whom she was. He was not just wishing to become friends with her because of her popularity.
While Xu Min and Yong Meilin made their way towards the arenas, no one dared to attack him, Much like they had done the month earlier, everyone was tensed up as he walked past.
Many of the men within the Hall of Champions wished to attack him instantly. They wished to remove all notions of pride and attack in a group of people to ensure that he would not manage to escape once more. If he was gone, Yong Meilin once more belonged to no one. Belonging to no one was far better than belonging to one man.
Jumping into the arena, no one dared to openly boo at the young man. No one cheered either but when his opponent, a Two-Star Warrior most likely middle stage, stepped onto the stage, the entire hall cheered. This could not help but cause Xu Min to smile wryly.
He knew that he had caused the majority of the men within the city to dislike him. He somewhat understood why they were so upset. He had taken Yong Meilin to be an annoyance at first, but seeing her work eagerly towards a goal, he had been moved. Although she was beautiful, he soon learned that she was also a hard worker. She was someone who was used to not getting what she wanted easily and she did not complain even if it was slow training.
Seeing Yong Meilin train, Xu Min could not help but wonder what would have happened if his sister trained to become a Student Warrior as well.
Thinking like this, sadness swept over Xu Min. This sadness soon turned to a boiling hateful anger which fueled the flame of revenge inside of him. His eyes were no longer friendly and cheerful. Instead, they were filled with killing intent as he stared at the warrior in front of him. Defeating this guy would make him stronger, so Xu Min took the stance of releasing the Shattering Palm. He used the exact same tactic as he had done against the guards back at the Yong family residence.
These warriors had not witnessed him fight before and as the palm descended upon the warrior, Xu Min followed suit with a physical attack. He instantly knocked the opposing warrior out of the ring.
Standing back, Xu Min let go of a deep breath. Together with the air, golden specks of light appeared. These lights showed that this young man was training at the same time as fighting, Only few cultivators dared to do this. If their dantian were damaged during this kind of training, it was highly likely that they would never return to the life of a cultivator.
Seeing this, the opponents standing in queue to battle Xu Min all had faces filled with delight and excitement. The reason that Yong Meilin was interested in thi
s guy was likely because he was special, either as a talent or because he was special in some way. It was obvious that Yong Meilin would not fall for a normal youngster. Thus, they all expected that once they had crippled the young man, it would be possible for them to make him less attractive and for Yong Meilin to dump him.
Thinking about killing him or crippling him, the opponent prefered crippling him as this would make him taste despair. Their plans were already spinning and their eyes filling with joy as ultimate ideas on to how to destroy the young man’s pride swirled within their minds.
Xu Min was not dumb. He knew exactly what their thoughts were, but the only thing he did was snort in contempt. It was true that it was risky, but the riskier it was, the better benefits it gave. Xu Min was not worried. He had already agreed with Cao Cao that if anyone were truly likely to defeat him and if someone were able to kill him, then the snake was allowed to save his life.
