Chu Zhiyuan cupped his fist in greeting, smiling as he sized her up.
Zhou Sisi possessed a delicate, oval face, with slender eyes, finely shaped eyebrows, and a straight nose, exuding a gentle and charming aura.
This Zhou Sisi appeared shy and introverted, seemingly bashful, yet her eyes shone with a bright intensity.
Clearly, her shyness wasn't genuine; it was merely a thin skin, as she possessed her own ideas and wouldn't be easily swayed by others.
He stood up and extended his hand: "Miss Zhou, I need to assess your condition. Please offer your hand."
Zhou Sisi blushed and extended her left wrist.
Chu Zhiyuan placed his fingers on her wrist, closed his eyes, and a wisp of his energy entered her body.
The cultivation method she practiced was, surprisingly, different from Xu Yingying's.
Xu Yingying's method was profound, unpredictable, requiring different paths with each advancement.
Zhou Sisi's method, however, was fixed, her energy clear and cold, following a path of pure Yin, similar to the Moon Invitation Palace.
Chu Zhiyuan then wrote down the Thick Earth Formula and the Scarlet Sun Formula for her, specifying the order and duration of cultivation.
Zhou Sisi retreated to Xu Suying's side, watching them from afar, a look of envy on her face.
"When will my junior sister break through?" Xu Yingying asked, tilting her head while sitting cross-legged on the Arhat bed.
Chu Zhiyuan returned to the Arhat bed: "She's been stuck at the Perfected Acquired Realm for some time, hasn't she? Two years?"
"So quickly?"
"She has good aptitude; she'll grasp the Thick Earth Formula and the Scarlet Sun Formula quickly and master them extremely fast."
"If she hadn't sought you out, how much longer would it have taken?"
"...Probably about a year."
Chu Zhiyuan said, "If her luck wasn't good, perhaps three to five years."
"One year..." Xu Yingying looked at Zhou Sisi in the distance: "Trading a year for a golden tiger, you've made a profit."
Chu Zhiyuan smiled: "Don't try to fool me with an ordinary golden tiger."
"How could I!" Xu Yingying scoffed: "I was still thinking of continuing to trade with you."
Chu Zhiyuan asked: "Does the Nine Separations Divine Sect have many more at the Perfected Acquired Realm?"
"Ten or eight, definitely. You're afraid to help so many?" Xu Yingying asked with a grin: "Are you afraid of the Emperor's punishment?"
"Punishment isn't the main concern."
Chu Zhiyuan said: "I just don't know if I'll be shooting myself in the foot."
As long as he didn't use his abilities to help the Great Meng, there would be no problem.
Although the imperial court deeply feared the Four Demonic Sects, they were still citizens of Great Jing; helping them was also helping Great Jing.
He was now increasingly convinced that the Emperor couldn't afford to fight the Four Demonic Sects and could only engage in open and covert struggles.
Helping the Four Demonic Sects gain more Grandmasters wouldn't affect the overall situation.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have dared to help Xu Yingying.
"Don't worry, they won't repay kindness with enmity," Xu Yingying said: "You are you, and the Emperor is the Emperor."
"Do you have the complete inheritance from within the Secret Land?" Chu Zhiyuan asked: "Most importantly, it must be complete."
"You want to practice it?" Xu Yingying asked: "The inheritances within the Secret Land can't be practiced; they're impossible to master."
"To study them, broaden my horizons."
Xu Yingying thought for a moment, then clapped her hands: "It seems there really is a complete inheritance."
She pressed on the Arhat bed, lightly floated towards the front hall, gracefully entered, and disappeared.
Xu Suying and Zhou Sisi curiously followed.
A moment later, Xu Yingying returned.
In her small hand, she held a sandalwood box, casually handing it to Chu Zhiyuan: "Here, inside is a copy of the Glazed Blade Sutra, the complete inheritance of the Glazed Blade Sect from within the Secret Land."
Chu Zhiyuan took the sandalwood box, supporting its weight, causing Xu Yingying to reveal disappointment.
She had deliberately pretended it was weightless, wanting to see Chu Zhiyuan fail to catch it off guard.
But Chu Zhiyuan showed no reaction, as if he knew the sandalwood box was heavy.
Chu Zhiyuan had indeed seen what was inside.
He opened the sandalwood box, revealing a thick silver book, shimmering with a silver light, about the thickness of two bricks.
He put down the sandalwood box and flipped through the silver book page by page.
The silver book wasn't made of pure silver; it was a special metal, resembling silver but far surpassing its toughness and strength.
This silver book was incorruptible and immortal; through some details, Chu Zhiyuan estimated it to be tens of thousands of years old.
After flipping through it page by page, Chu Zhiyuan slowly nodded.
It was indeed as he had guessed.
Internal and external cultivation.
Treating the person as the blade, refining the blade while also refining the person, cultivating the body, Astral Qi, and Spiritual Qi simultaneously, advancing together.
Ultimately, cultivating to become a Blade God.
This Blade God wasn't a Yang God, but a fusion of man and blade, absorbing the blade's spirituality into the person's soul, thereby condensing the God of the Blade, stepping into the Blade God Realm, becoming invincible in the world.
The Blade God could achieve an imperishable body, living eternally.
Chu Zhiyuan's eyes lit up as he read.
It was actually a method for achieving immortality!
Xu Yingying giggled: "Aren't you happy to see immortality?"
Chu Zhiyuan looked at her.
Xu Yingying shook her head with a giggle: "You've been fooled. If they could really achieve immortality, where are they now?"
Chu Zhiyuan frowned.
Xu Yingying said: "They say they can achieve immortality, but it's actually impossible; it's just an ideal state, bragging."
Chu Zhiyuan pondered.
He was deducing this Glazed Blade Sutra, wondering if cultivating to the end, becoming a Blade God, could really achieve immortality.
Thinking about it, it seemed possible.
The key point was the final step, merging the blade's spirit into one's own soul, making the soul indestructible.
This was the most crucial step, and probably the most dangerous, with a minimal chance of success.
Xu Yingying said: "Anyway, these inheritances in the Secret Land have all died out; they all died in the Secret Land."
"Not necessarily all died in the Secret Land," Chu Zhiyuan said: "It's possible they left the Secret Land from somewhere else."
"Then why don't they come back?" Xu Yingying scoffed: "There should always be a return, right? There isn't a single living person in the Secret Land; they were probably all eaten by demonic beasts in the end."
Chu Zhiyuan couldn't refute her.
The Secret Land had existed for thousands, tens of thousands of years, and still hadn't been understood.
He couldn't hope to understand it in a short time.
But he knew that the secrets of the Secret Land were of great importance, perhaps containing the greatest mysteries in the world.
"You practice flying knives," Xu Yingying said with a smile: "You should be interested in this blade sutra, but it's best not to practice it blindly. It's okay to refer to it; it's quite amazing."
Chu Zhiyuan slowly nodded.
This Glazed Blade Sutra was somewhat similar to the Void Sword Sect.
In comparison, he suddenly felt that the Void Sword Sect had taken a dangerous path.
The Glazed Blade Sutra cultivated both internally and externally, refining both the blade and the person, which was more comprehensive and orthodox than the Void Sword Sect's focus on meridians and sword control.
"Thank you," Chu Zhiyuan placed the silver book back into the sandalwood box, closed the box, and stood up: "I'm leaving."
He was about to leave.
Xu Yingying quickly said: "What's the rush? It's not too late to leave after eating."
Chu Zhiyuan said: "I have Flood Dragon meat to eat back home, which will help my cultivation."
"...Alright then," Xu Yingying said helplessly.
Chu Zhiyuan carried the sandalwood box and cupped his fist towards Xu Suying from afar: "Mr. Xu, farewell."
Xu Suying cupped her fist: "We'll meet again."
Xu Yingying quickly said: "In half a month, okay?"
"If I'm not in Yujing," Chu Zhiyuan said: "You can come find me yourself."
Xu Yingying could find him.
"If you're not in Yujing, where would you be? The Moon Invitation Palace?" Xu Yingying immediately chased after him curiously.
Chu Zhiyuan exited the manor's gate: "I don't know yet; we'll see."
Two Heavenly Dragon Divine Horses were already waiting outside.
They lightly pawed the ground, creating small pits, and neighed softly when they saw him come out.
Chu Zhiyuan flipped onto his horse, cupped his fist: "Farewell."
Immediately, two golden lights shot out, disappearing from her sight in the blink of an eye.
Xu Yingying stomped her foot in dissatisfaction, annoyed that he was being mysterious and hadn't told her where he was going.
