Cold sweat still beaded on Hei Niu’s simple, honest face, a remnant of his earlier fright.
He blinked his eyes a few times.
He asked timidly,
"If I follow you, will I get to eat until I’m full?"
Lu Changfeng said, "You’ll always have a full belly. And I’ll give you three taels of silver each month."
"Deal!" Hei Niu nodded decisively.
And so, Lu Changfeng brought Hei Niu back to the Changle Martial Arts Hall.
At the Changle Martial Arts Hall, most of the daily affairs were now handled by Second Senior Brother Zhou Feng.
Zhang Desheng, growing thinner by the day, had also noticed that Lu Changfeng had no intention of taking over the Martial Arts Hall.
Thus, he tacitly approved of Zhou Feng inheriting the Martial Arts Hall.
With Lu Changfeng vouching for him and paying his fees, Hei Niu became a Named Disciple of the Changle Martial Arts Hall.
Lu Changfeng personally taught Hei Niu his Martial Arts.
He taught him the Great Buddha Fist, a powerful and aggressive Fist Technique that was a component of the Le Mountain Angry Vajra.
The techniques of the Le Mountain Angry Vajra Blood Forging Technique were a fusion of three Cultivation Techniques: the Changle Palm Method, the Great Buddha Fist, and the Angry-eyed Vajra.
When paired with a unique breathing method, it became a complete Blood Forging Technique.
For the several disciples with ordinary Root Bones who couldn’t endure prolonged cultivation, practicing the three Cultivation Techniques separately could also yield decent Blood Forging results.
Among the three, the Changle Palm Method was the easiest to cultivate, had the lowest requirement for Root Bone, and still provided fairly good Blood Forging effects. Therefore, Zhang Desheng used it as the entry-level technique for Named Disciples.
Only after they built a foundation by reaching the Blood Forging First Layer would he personally impart the complete Le Mountain Angry Vajra.
In Hei Niu’s case, Lu Changfeng knew that he possessed a Middle-Grade Fist Technique Talent.
Therefore, teaching him the Great Buddha Fist was the most suitable cultivation method for him.
’If your Root Bone is lacking, make up for it with Talent.’
Due to the unpredictable nature of Martial Talent, many people could go their entire lives without ever discovering their own.
For example, Li Youtian possessed a Swordsmanship Talent, but he had never even come into contact with swordsmanship. How could he possibly develop his talent?
Under Lu Changfeng’s guidance, Hei Niu displayed an extremely strong talent.
In just half a month, he actually reached the entry level of the Great Buddha Fist.
Just as Lu Changfeng had predicted, his strong comprehension of the Cultivation Technique accelerated Hei Niu’s cultivation speed.
As Hei Niu rapidly cultivated the Great Buddha Fist to Great Success and even Perfection, although his Root Bone was only Lower C Class, his actual cultivation speed could probably reach the level of a Lower B Class.
Moreover, Hei Niu’s true Combat Power would be much higher than others at the same level.
If he were sent out, he could definitely be considered an elite in any gang.
Another person in a similar situation to Hei Niu was Li Youtian.
However, Li Youtian was a bit too old, and his Root Bone was D Class. His Swordsmanship Talent was wasted in this life; perhaps he could make use of it in the one after next...
In this way, more than three months passed in tedious cultivation.
Hei Niu’s cultivation speed surpassed everyone’s expectations at the Martial Arts Hall.
In just over three months, he had actually managed to break through to the Blood Forging First Layer Realm!
One had to remember that Lu Changfeng, with his Lower A Class Talent, had also taken a month to break through to the Blood Forging First Layer.
Only Lu Changfeng knew that Hei Niu had relied on insane, bitter training and his terrifying talent to cultivate the Great Buddha Fist to Great Success in a short time.
By relying on the Great Success level Cultivation Technique and some Exotic Beast Meat provided by Lu Changfeng, he successfully broke through to the Blood Forging First Layer within three months.
"Master, your grace to me is like giving me a new life. Hei Niu is willing to serve you for the rest of his life."
After stabilizing his Realm, Hei Niu had grown from 1.6 meters to 1.7 meters tall. He finally no longer looked like a shorty. Upon finding Lu Changfeng, he immediately knelt.
Although Hei Niu had joined the Changle Martial Arts Hall, he only recognized Lu Changfeng as his master.
Even though he was three years older than Lu Changfeng, he didn’t mind this in the slightest.
After Lu Changfeng tried to correct him a few times, he just let him be.
Hei Niu might look simple and honest, but he had been through many hardships after entering the city and joining a gang.
He naturally knew what it meant to be able to advance to the Blood Forging First Layer.
Something that would have been impossible in his entire lifetime had been achieved with Lu Changfeng’s help. Hei Niu was grateful to Lu Changfeng from the bottom of his heart.
"Alright, you’ve already repaid me. There’s no need for this," Lu Changfeng said, waving his hand dismissively.
These words left Hei Niu baffled. ’When did I repay Master? How come I don’t know about it?’
He just assumed it was Lu Changfeng’s excuse.
But what Lu Changfeng said was true.
In those three-plus months,
Lu Changfeng had copied from Hei Niu, who stayed by his side, and obtained the Middle-Grade Fist Technique Talent.
He had copied from his master, Zhang Desheng, and obtained the Low-Grade Palm Technique Talent.
Relying on these two new talents, Lu Changfeng finally broke through the bottleneck with his Le Mountain Angry Vajra, which had been stuck at the Minor Achievement Realm, and cultivated it to Great Success!
After his Blood Forging Technique reached Great Success, Lu Changfeng’s cultivation speed increased by about twenty percent!
This had already allowed Lu Changfeng to make up for a significant portion of the cultivation speed he had lost due to the lack of Exotic Beast Meat.
"Alright, now that you have broken through to the Blood Forging First Layer, it’s time I taught you the Le Mountain Angry Vajra."
"Otherwise, your Blood Forging cultivation will slow down rapidly. The Great Buddha Fist is fine for getting to the entry level, but for subsequent cultivation, you must practice the complete Le Mountain Angry Vajra."
Lu Changfeng personally guided Hei Niu in cultivating the Le Mountain Angry Vajra.
Hei Niu practiced methodically. With the Great Success level of the Great Buddha Fist as his foundation, his cultivation was progressing quite well.
It would likely take him a little over a month to reach the entry level of the Le Mountain Angry Vajra.
Lu Changfeng’s own cultivation was mainly focused on his Blood Forging Technique.
He intended to bring the Le Mountain Angry Vajra to the Perfection realm as soon as possible, which would increase his cultivation speed by another thirty percent!
His master Zhang Desheng’s body was increasingly unable to hold on.
Broadening his perspective, the threat from the Profound Nether Sect in Cyan Mountain Prefecture was ever-present.
If Zhang Desheng really died, the future of the Changle Martial Arts Hall would be grim.
Now, with the news spreading that Zhang Desheng was weakened and his strength greatly diminished, there were already people watching like hungry tigers.
To say nothing of anything else, the land the Changle Martial Arts Hall sat on was in one of the best locations in the Outer City, making it incredibly valuable.
The other three of the Four Great Martial Arts Halls had already sent disciples to probe the situation.
However, they were all blocked by Zhou Feng and Lu Changfeng.
This was the case while Zhang Desheng was still alive; if he were to actually die, wouldn’t the surrounding jackals and wolves swarm in to devour the Changle Martial Arts Hall completely?
Name: Lu Changfeng
Root Bone: Upper A
Talent: High-Grade Talent [Swordsman], Middle Grade Talent [Light Body Technique], Middle Grade Talent [Fist Technique], [Low-Grade Palm Technique Talent]
Realm: Blood Forging Fourth Layer
Blood Forging Technique: [Le Mountain Angry Vajra] Great Success
Martial Arts: [Gale Swordsmanship] Perfection, [Blood Burst Step] Perfection, [Antelope Leaping Skill] Perfection
Martial Arts Insights: Gale Sword Intent (Basic Sword Intent) (Swordsmanship power +50%)
Cooldown: 45 days.
Lu Changfeng glanced at his status screen and felt that his strength was still insufficient.
’If something really happens to Master, I’m afraid I won’t be able to look after the Changle Martial Arts Hall for him.’
’If only I had a chance to get a large amount of Exotic Beast Meat, or copy one or two top-tier Talents or Root Bones.’
Perhaps Lu Changfeng’s grumbling had some effect, because on this day, Third Senior Brother Liuu Ye came looking for him.