"Don’t you underestimate my Iron Bull Skill."
Liu Ye explained while waving the manual in his hand, "Do you know what state of mind is most suitable for beginning Yama’s Three Demonic Sabers?"
Hearing this, Wang Ping fell into deep thought.
According to Liu Ye, the first of Yama’s Three Demonic Sabers is called "Greed." When practicing it, one is assaulted by the Sword Intent of this emotion.
’What state of mind could counter it?’
In a flash of inspiration, Wang Ping had an idea. "The state of mind... it’s related to the Iron Bull Skill... Could it be that brief moment of clarity after, you know, doing *that*?"
"...You’re a clever one, kid."
Liu Ye nodded. "Exactly. In that state, a man is without desire, which is the perfect counter to the Sword Intent of ’Greed.’"
"In other words, the more you enter that state of clarity, the stronger your resistance to ’Greed’ becomes. Your cultivation will be faster, and the risk of starting will be lower... And my Iron Bull Skill is an unparalleled technique that lets you experience that state of clarity multiple times without harming your body!"
Wang Ping was incredibly tempted.
’Of course, it wasn’t that he was a lecher. The main thing was, just as Liu Ye said, this Iron Bull Skill would help him quickly master Yama’s Three Demonic Sabers.’
Besides that, there was an even more important reason:
’This Cultivation Technique might also help me practice the Innate Method of the Desire Realm!’
’This Secret Technique from the Celestial Book of the Heavens of Desire and Transformation is actually quite simple to practice. To put it bluntly, it involves... vigorous exercise with a partner.’
’The Secret Technique has 108 positions. Completing them all constitutes one Minor Circulation. After each Minor Circulation, you must switch to a new partner.’
’By continuously "defeating" one hundred and eight people in this manner, you complete one Grand Circulation.’
’Once you can complete a Grand Circulation without stopping, you have mastered the technique. From then on, you are a Desire Realm Celestial Being.’
After becoming a Desire Realm Celestial Being, not only could one sense the emotions and thoughts of others, but one could even manipulate them slightly, and even condense Spiritual Sense—an ability only Cultivators possessed. Wang Ping had been drooling over these wondrous abilities for a long time, but the cultivation requirements were far too harsh. It was hardly a technique for humans to learn.
But now, he saw a glimmer of hope.
’If I master the Iron Bull Skill to perfection, could the resulting ability, the "Indomitable Golden Spear," withstand the drain from the Innate Method of the Desire Realm?’
’It just might!’
At this thought, Wang Ping became dead set on acquiring the Iron Bull Skill. However, he soon realized a rather embarrassing problem.
He was out of money.
He had just used more than half of his Salary Silver as a constable to butter up Liu Ye. There was no way he could afford a Martial Arts manual with what was left.
After thinking it over, Wang Ping could only give a wry smile. "You must be laughing at me, Master Liu. I’m a bit strapped for cash recently. How about you name a price and give me a few days to scrounge up the money... or perhaps sell it to me on credit? I can pay you back slowly, with interest, from my monthly Salary Silver."
Liu Ye laughed at his words.
"Xiaowang, you’ve got it all wrong. In your eyes, am I really the kind of person who only cares about money?"
’Aren’t you?’
Wang Ping grumbled internally. But in the next second, he saw Liu Ye give a grand wave of his hand and shove the Iron Bull Skill manual directly into his arms.
"There, take it."
"Don’t worry, I don’t want money. We’ll do a trade. If you get any new Martial Arts in the future, just secretly give them to me, and we’ll call it even."
"How about it?"
As soon as he said this, Wang Ping, who had been completely bewildered just a moment ago, had a sudden realization. Looking at Liu Ye again, he now understood the senior constable’s scheme.
’He’s a pretty good judge of character. He must think I might take on Chief Constable Chen’s mission in the future and get that mid-tier Martial Arts manual as a reward. So he wants to trade the Iron Bull Skill for my future mid-tier Martial Arts? This way, he gets what he wants without taking any risks...’
Thinking of this, Wang Ping’s attitude instantly changed.
"Brother Liu, if that’s what you’re proposing... then we’re not talking about the same price anymore."
Liu Ye: "..."
’This damn kid really is something else. One second it’s ’Master Liu,’ the next it’s ’Brother Liu.’ He changes his tune faster than an old timer like me!’
After a moment of silence, Liu Ye lowered his voice. "How much do you want?"
Wang Ping held up five fingers. "Five hundred taels."
"That’s highway robbery!"
Liu Ye was incensed. "Five hundred taels? The bounty for Shouchong wasn’t even that damn high! How much is our monthly salary? The nerve of you to ask for that much!"
Wang Ping shook his head helplessly. "I have no choice. After all, Brother Liu, as good as your Iron Bull Skill is, it needs practical application to improve. But I’m flat broke right now. Even if I wanted some ’practical application,’ I just can’t afford it. I can’t just go around assaulting respectable women, can I?"
Liu Ye finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Idiot, the Iron Bull Skill isn’t that rigid! Who said ’practical application’ has to be with another person? Don’t you ever use your own hand?"
Wang Ping: "..."
’Of course, he wasn’t so slow that he couldn’t grasp that level of "ingenuity." The problem was, while that method might work for the Iron Bull Skill, the Innate Method of the Desire Realm required a Zhenren.’
So he stuck firm to his condition.
"Five hundred taels, not a single coin less!"
"You..."
Liu Ye’s eyes narrowed at his words, but they soon relaxed. On second thought... he had just remembered that the young man before him was probably a virgin, right?
’He’s young and full of vigorous Blood Qi. It’s only normal that he’d want to get a taste of the real thing.’
"...Fine, fine."
Thinking of this, Liu Ye changed his tune. "I don’t have the money, but if it’s just ’practical application’ you’re after... I have a connection at the Danfeng Building in the city."