Faced with Tang Zhengyang's inquiry, Xie An felt a little unwilling to reveal his progress.
Brother Tang had spent a century without breaking through the Four Seasons Barrier, remaining stuck at the sixth stage of the Bright Jade Skill.
Yet, he himself had reached the eighteenth stage in just seven or eight years.
This seemed unfair and even cruel to Brother Tang.
But this world was inherently unfair and cruel, and Xie An's compassion wouldn't change that.
After much deliberation, Xie An decided to tell the truth.
Compared to being unfeeling, deception was more hurtful.
Xie An solemnly clasped his hands, "Thanks to Brother's care, I have reached the eighteenth stage of the Bright Jade Skill, Frost's Descent."
Whoosh!
Even the Tang Family Head, with his centuries of experience, couldn't help but stand up abruptly upon hearing this, staring at Xie An in disbelief, the pupils in his deep-set eyes suddenly becoming exceptionally bright.
Then, the Tang Family Head gripped Xie An's shoulders tightly, greatly excited, "In just seven years, Fifth Brother has reached the eighteenth stage, Frost's Descent, from scratch. Truly a genius! Hahaha, your elder brother didn't misjudge you.
On such a joyous occasion, how can we be without wine?"
The Tang Family Head suddenly laughed loudly, grabbing a jar of unopened strong liquor from the side, tearing open the lotus leaf and kraft paper sealing it, pouring a large bowl for Xie An, and then pouring one for himself.
The Tang Family Head raised the two large bowls of wine, handing one to Xie An, laughing heartily, "Come, let us celebrate for Fifth Brother."
Xie An accepted the bowl, solemnly saying, "To Brother."
"Refreshing! This is how life should be! Three more bowls!"
Tang Zhengyang was as excited as if he were the one who had reached the eighteenth stage of the Bright Jade Skill, laughing heartily while continuously drinking three large bowls of strong liquor with Xie An.
The summer day was still very hot, and the strong liquor burned like fire in the stomach, the alcohol stimulating the brain, releasing a sense of heroic and grand joy.
By the fourth bowl, Xie An's heart had also become much more heroic.
The clear liquor flowed down their chins, constantly dripping down, flowing over their necks, soaking their clothes, and also flowing into their hearts, turning into the brotherhood of sharing weal and woe.
After four large bowls of strong liquor, Tang Zhengyang slammed the bowl heavily on the table, laughing heartily, "Refreshing! So refreshing! Hahaha..."
Xie An was infected by the mood and laughed along.
He could feel that Tang Zhengyang was truly happy for his achievement.
This was a very rare bond.
Having lived two lives, Xie An knew one thing very well: many relatives and friends indeed sympathize with you and don't want you to live poorly. They even hope you live well. But they absolutely don't want you to live better than them.
Only those who truly treat you as important as themselves will hope you live better than them.
Brother Tang was clearly one of them.
How was that possible?
His teacher, Li Changchun, had paid a great price to break through the barrier and enter autumn. Afterward, in order to enter winter, he even feigned death and hibernated, using the earth's yin water to nourish himself, spending a century to complete the feat of entering winter.
Even when the Tang Family Head and his senior brother buried Li Changchun's corpse at the time, they didn't know that their teacher's actions were for the sake of entering winter.
And the teacher didn't tell Tang Zhengyang the method of breaking through to enter summer and autumn.
That was why Tang Zhengyang had no choice but to form a sworn brotherhood with the other three brothers, exploring the method of breaking through the barrier.
This time, upon hearing that Xie An had broken through the eighteen stages of the Bright Jade Skill, Tang Zhengyang had thought that Xie An had found a way to break through the barrier and could learn from Xie An's experience, so that he could also break through the barrier.
But Xie An had said such a thing.
It was inevitable that Tang Zhengyang would have a thought: Was Xie An intentionally hiding the key information about the Four Seasons Barrier, or did he not want Tang Zhengyang to succeed in breaking through the barrier?
But Tang Zhengyang clearly saw that Xie An's eyes were clear and didn't seem to be lying. Moreover, Xie An had no need to lie.
"Then did Fifth Brother experience any other abnormalities during his cultivation process? Logically speaking... the Four Seasons Barrier exists in reality."
Xie An knew very well that building a brotherhood was not easy, requiring years of time to settle, mutual understanding, to establish back-to-back trust. But to destroy trust was very simple, sometimes a few words could cause people to have suspicions.
The Tang Family Head cherished Xie An, and Xie An naturally cherished this elder brother, and didn't want to create suspicion because of this.
Xie An clasped his hands and said, "There is indeed an abnormality. Does Brother know about corpse energy?"
The Tang Family Head said, "I know. Corpse refiners can refine corpse energy. Didn't the Great Priest of the Corpse Refining Hall of Great Yin Mountain spend a century refining eight thousand strands of corpse energy to nourish the Immortal Queen of the previous dynasty? You told me about it, and I know some things. Corpse energy is also called Undying Qi, and can be used to increase lifespan. But only martial arts grandmasters can know how to use it. Ordinary martial artists cannot use Undying Qi."
It's good that Brother knows...
Xie An breathed a slight sigh of relief and said, "I don't know what's going on either, but I can actually absorb this Undying Qi, accelerating the progress of the Bright Jade Skill. The reason why the Princess cooperated with me in the first place was related to this."
Tang Zhengyang was greatly shocked, "You can absorb Undying Qi! But from what I see of your martial arts cultivation, you haven't even entered the Martial Artist stage..."
"As far as I know, only martial arts grandmasters who have opened the human body's secret treasures can absorb Undying Qi, strengthen their bodies, replenish their body's consumption, and increase their lifespan."
Tang Zhengyang was silent for a long time and asked, "How much Undying Qi did you absorb?"
Xie An revealed everything, "Perhaps I was lucky, but basically all eight thousand strands of Undying Qi refined by the Great Priest were absorbed by me. I was trapped underground for four years, and I was actually digesting and absorbing those eight thousand strands of Undying Qi. Thanks to this, I was able to cultivate the Bright Jade Skill to the eighteenth stage."
Except for the Immortal Destiny, all other information... Xie An didn't hide anything.
He just didn't want Brother Tang to overthink, and even more so didn't want to affect this brotherly relationship.
Tang Zhengyang was stunned for a long time, "It seems that Fifth Brother is naturally gifted. I have heard that some people have special destinies that can possess all kinds of magical abilities."
Xie An didn't expect Tang Zhengyang to be so knowledgeable, "Destiny?"
Tang Zhengyang said, "Yes. I heard my teacher mention the term 'spiritual root' before, saying that people with good spiritual roots can cultivate body-nurturing techniques with half the effort and twice the result, advancing rapidly. In the secular world, perhaps this so-called spiritual root is the same as destiny. Fifth Brother should belong to this category."
Xie An breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.
This was very good.
Brother wouldn't think he was hiding anything anymore.
Without waiting for Xie An to ask more, Tang Zhengyang gave an explanation, "The Four Seasons Barrier exists in four stages: entering spring, entering summer, entering autumn, and entering winter. It must be so. Otherwise, Fifth Brother's progress couldn't be so fast."
Then, Tang Zhengyang patted Xie An's shoulder heavily, "Fifth Brother is truly a person of great fortune. Even Master Li Changchun spent a century to enter winter. Fifth Brother is advancing bravely and diligently all the way, and his future is limitless. You don't need to overthink, Brother trusts you."
"Thank you for your trust, Brother. I will now demonstrate the Bright Jade Skill. I will deliberately slow down the speed, especially when breaking through the barrier, please watch carefully, Brother."
Xie An left his seat and went with Tang Zhengyang to the central courtyard, then walked under the ancient locust tree.
Tang Zhengyang stood beside him, gesturing for Xie An to begin.
Whoosh!
Xie An took a deep breath and then began to circulate the Bright Jade Skill.
The heat in his body began to move, spreading through his limbs and body, circulating for a week before starting the stance:
Beginning of Spring, Rain Water, Awakening of Insects, Vernal Equinox, Pure Brightness, Grain Rain.
Xie An quickly advanced through the first six solar terms. He knew very well that Tang Zhengyang had already cultivated to the sixth solar term, so there was nothing to show off in this part.
When he reached Grain Rain, Xie An slowed down.
Then, Xie An's body suddenly tightened, and his aura soared.
Beginning of Summer.
Successfully entered summer, breaking through the barrier of the four seasons.
Moreover, the improvement was as smooth as silk, without any stagnation or hesitation. It seemed that there really was no barrier of the four seasons...
"Brother, can you see clearly?" Xie An was able to concentrate on speaking to Tang Zhengyang while circulating his energy.
Tang Zhengyang's eyes became very bright, as if he was watching every detail of Xie An's body. He couldn't help but excitedly say, "Good, well done. I'm watching, Fifth Brother, continue."
"Yes."
Xie An nodded and continued to urge the Bright Jade Skill, constantly leaping and elevating his energy level.
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Lesser Fullness, Grain in Ear, Summer Solstice, Minor Heat, Major Heat.
In just a dozen breaths, he advanced to the twelfth stage of the Bright Jade Skill.
At this moment, Xie An's body had undergone some kind of transformation. His whole body was filled with rolling heat, like a pot of boiling water, with surging energy. However, the energy was not released outwards.
The small universe was boiling.
"Brother, watch carefully, I'm about to enter autumn."
Tang Zhengyang stared at Xie An intently, "Good!"
Buzz!
Xie An's muscles and bones resonated, and the aura on his body rose again. He entered autumn with a bang.
Beginning of Autumn.
After entering autumn, Xie An continued to urge the Bright Jade Skill, and the heat滞留在体内的热气已经开始外放了. It was as if the boiling small universe had begun to burn.
The body's heat flow rose steadily.
Beginning of Autumn, End of Heat, White Dew, Autumnal Equinox, Cold Dew.
At this moment, Xie An was surrounded by an extremely high temperature heat within a three-meter radius. Even a powerful Grand Martial Master like Tang Zhengyang could not get within three meters of Xie An.
Tang Zhengyang's gaze became unprecedentedly bright, and his body trembled with excessive excitement, "Fifth Brother, continue."
"Okay."
Xie An snapped his fingers, and the Bright Jade Skill went to the next level.
Frost's Descent!
Rumble!
His muscles and bones hummed, and his whole body made a "crackling" sound like fried beans. Xie An's skin became somewhat transparent, truly like ice muscle and jade bones. His appearance became younger again.
As if a vast life force erupted in Xie An's body, the heat within three meters of him spontaneously flowed, forming a vortex that slowly attracted the surrounding sand and stones.
"Brother, this is my current limit. At the Frost's Descent level, I have immense strength and lightning speed. My body can be as heavy as a mountain or as light as a swallow. My combat power is extremely powerful. Please see, Brother."
After saying that, Xie An raised his right index finger and slowly pressed it on the ground.
The moment his finger touched the ground, a loud "rumbling" sound suddenly erupted, and the marble floor tiles within a five- or six-meter radius shattered, and the entire ground sank by more than a meter.
The next moment, Xie An rushed to the ancient locust tree next to him, rushed to the treetop in one step, stood on a branch as thick as chopsticks, and was as stable as Mount Tai.
After staying for a while, Xie An stopped his work and appeared in front of Tang Zhengyang in one step, humbly bowing his hands: "This is the ability of the eighteenth stage of the Bright Jade Skill, Frost's Descent."
Tang Zhengyang was stunned for a long time before he recovered, "It's really amazing. The last time I saw such a miracle was a hundred years ago on my master. I didn't expect Fifth Brother to do it in seven years. It's really incredible."
Xie An said: "Thank you, Brother, for passing on the skill. That's why I have this opportunity."
Tang Zhengyang sighed greatly, "It's Fifth Brother who has a deep connection, coupled with diligence and hard work, that he has achieved this. Now, it's the elder brother who should thank you. This time, watching you break through the barriers and climb steadily, I, as the elder brother, also have some insights. Next, I need to retreat for a period of time, or I can enter summer."
Hearing this, Xie An was also filled with emotion.
Tang Zhengyang is indeed the former sky of Qingwu County, with extremely high talent. He has insights after seeing it only once.
Xie An was very happy, "I look forward to my brother entering summer soon. If there is anything you need, please feel free to use me."
Tang Zhengyang laughed loudly, took Xie An's hand and entered the pavilion to make tea, "You're too polite. Practicing and comprehending is my own business. Fifth Brother has helped me too much. I have seen everything that should be shown. Whether to break through the barrier next depends on my own talent and understanding."
Xie An sat next to him, accompanying Tang Zhengyang to make tea, "When does Brother plan to retreat?"
Tang Zhengyang said, "This time I retreat, it will take at least a year and a half, maybe longer. If the retreat fails, I guess this life will be over. Some family affairs need to be arranged. In addition, during my retreat, I also need Fifth Brother to help take care of my family."
Xie An readily agreed, "This is my duty. Even if my brother doesn't mention it, I should do so."
Tang Zhengyang thanked him, and then said: "I naturally trust Fifth Brother's character. With Fifth Brother's current Bright Jade Skill, he can barely compare to an eighth-level martial artist. Even I, as an elder brother, am not your opponent. But now Qingwu County is not what it used to be. The people of King Huainan have come, and the Weisuo and the Demon Suppression Office have been upgraded. Masters from all walks of life have come here. An eighth-level martial artist is not safe. By the way, how long does Fifth Brother think it will take to enter winter and step into the nineteenth stage of the Bright Jade Skill?"
Xie An said, "I'm afraid it will take a year and a half."
This is the truth.
After the Bright Jade Skill entered Frost's Descent, the progress slowed down greatly. Xie An conservatively estimates that half a year is needed. And there can be no barriers to entering winter, otherwise...
Tang Zhengyang said: "If this is the case, Fifth Brother still needs to practice martial arts diligently. The chaos in Qingwu County may come soon. More strength means more ability to protect yourself."
Speaking of this, Xie An smiled bitterly: "Breaking through to a martial master requires Inner Strength Pills. This thing is hard to buy. I originally had a chance to get Inner Strength Pills a few years ago, but Meng Hu never gave them to me. Now Meng Hu has sold Baiyutang to the Giant Whale Gang... the matter of Inner Strength Pills is even more difficult."
"Come with me."
Tang Zhengyang took Xie An into the hall, then took out a red brocade box and handed it to Xie An, "There are five Inner Strength Pills inside. Just take them and take them."
Xie An was shocked, "This is too precious."
Xie An has a long life, and naturally does not lack resources in the health-preserving skills.
But in terms of martial arts... Xie An has nothing special, and still needs resources.
Tang Zhengyang stuffed the brocade box into Xie An's hand, "You have helped me so much, if you don't accept a few Inner Strength Pills, you don't recognize me as your brother."
Xie An smiled and accepted it, "Thank you, Brother."
With the Inner Strength Pills, Xie An's martial arts can also be improved, and he is naturally very happy.
It's always good to have more skills.
In troubled times, who would dislike having fewer life-saving skills?
The two returned to the pavilion and talked about the past, which was very pleasant. Finally, Xie An changed the subject, "I have one more thing I want to ask my brother's opinion on."
"You say."
Xie An took out the fifth-grade Demon Suppression Division Chief's appointment letter from his pocket and handed it to Tang Zhengyang, "This is a gift from the eldest princess. What does my brother think, can I be the chief of the Qingwu Demon Suppression Mansion?"
