Good Fortune Immortal Road

Chapter 12: Diligent Cultivation

Shen Lang felt his own inadequacy in the sword fight against the Black Armor Corpse, but the three onlookers were already shocked. They never expected that Shen Lang not only excelled in swordsmanship, but also learned so many secret techniques, contrary to what was previously said. The three were impressed by the endless spells displayed by Shen Lang in battle. Just how much magical power does he have to support the use of so many spells?

Jiang Yingxue and Jiang Tao also felt the gap between themselves and Shen Lang, which slightly shook their confidence. Although Shen Lang eventually called them to join the fight, they knew deep down that it was because Shen Lang didn't want to waste any more time. Otherwise, Shen Lang alone could have worn down the zombie.

Although Shen Lang defeated the Black Armor Corpse with a variety of spells, his previously proud swordsmanship was easily broken, which was quite a blow to him.

So the four of them left the General's Tomb with different emotions. They encountered no harassment from zombies along the way and left smoothly.

Outside the General's Tomb, Yang Ming watched as the four of them came out and warmly asked about their gains.

"Judging from your appearance, you must have gained quite a bit this time, right?"

"We did gain quite a bit this time. The zombies we captured have excellent potential," Shen Lang replied, quite satisfied with their gains.

Yang Ming's heart stirred. This would further increase the strength of the four of them, giving them an advantage in the upcoming competition.

Seeing the satisfied faces of the four, Yang Ming laughed heartily and led them away from the General's Tomb.

It was already afternoon. Yang Ming instructed them to continue attending classes in the upper courtyard tomorrow and dismissed them to make their own arrangements.

Shen Lang thought about his shortcomings in today's battle and decided to go to the Tower of Myriad Laws to see if there were any insights on the basics of swordsmanship. The other three agreed. The four of them headed towards the Tower of Myriad Laws together.

Shen Lang skillfully arrived at the Miscellaneous Records area. This time, his purpose was not to learn more spells, but to study some insights on swordsmanship and combat experience.

After searching for a while, he found what he was looking for. A jade scroll called "The True Explanation of Swordsmanship" was held in Shen Lang's hand.

This jade scroll has a grand name, but its content is not simple. It provides a detailed introduction to a senior predecessor, recording many insights on swordsmanship since entering the sect.

Before entering the sect, this senior predecessor came from a renowned swordsmanship family in the mortal world. Therefore, they started practicing swordsmanship from a young age. After entering the sect, they were even more eager to learn various mystical sword techniques. Through relentless effort and astonishing talent, they finally established a place for themselves in the sect with their swordsmanship.

Shen Lang carefully examines the Sword Heart cultivation method of this senior predecessor. It provides detailed explanations of the fundamentals of swordsmanship, as well as the details, essentials, insights, and charm of the sword techniques they practiced.

After reading it, Shen Lang gains a lot and identifies what is lacking in his own swordsmanship.

However, Shen Lang is not satisfied and continues to search for more insights to absorb. In the afternoon, Shen Lang examines nearly forty to fifty jade scrolls, which not only discuss swordsmanship but also share experiences in cultivation and methods for cultivating zombies.

Satisfied, Shen Lang returns to the residence with the other three. Shen Lang begins to contemplate the insights gained from the jade scrolls today, which greatly inspire him with their experiences and perspectives.

Whether it is swordsmanship or spells, Shen Lang can quickly grasp and become proficient in them. However, this is far from enough.

Although the predecessors who left behind these jade scrolls have different levels of cultivation, they all agree on one thing: a solid foundation is essential.

Mastery of spells or swordsmanship requires more than just proficiency; it needs to become instinctual. Only then can one achieve a certain level of proficiency. Furthermore, understanding and even mastering their essence is what truly counts. As for the ultimate stage of perfection, even these predecessors did not provide an answer. Shen Lang will have to explore it himself.

Taking a deep breath, Shen Lang reflects on the past few days. It seems that his exceptional talent has blinded him. In his previous life, even the things he learned as a child required constant practice to consolidate and deepen his understanding. Now, his outstanding talent has made him complacent.

Calm and composed, Shen Lang understands the problem he faces now. The saying "diligence makes up for lack of talent" applies to him. His extraordinary talent is not an excuse for not working hard; it is merely a boost to help him reach higher levels.

After realizing this, Shen Lang takes action. He starts by practicing swordsmanship, carefully executing each move and reflecting on any flaws after each practice. The Seed of Good Fortune in his sea of consciousness also cooperates, allowing Shen Lang to clearly see the problems in his practice.

In this way, he practices repeatedly until midnight. Shen Lang wipes away his sweat, takes a bath, and begins to meditate and cultivate, wasting no time.

The cultivation session ends. Today, he will attend a lecture in the main hall. Shen Lang wonders what Yang Ming, his teacher, will talk about. So, he gets up early, prepares himself, and goes to the main hall with the other three to attend the lecture.

This time, the four of them arrive early, and other disciples gradually arrive afterward. The attitude of the other disciples noticeably changes when they see the four of them.

Jiang Tao had already recruited many disciples before, and now the remaining disciples have also realized the gap between themselves and the four. They consciously put themselves in the position of junior brothers and sisters, and Shen Lang has become the core of the Wind Class, and even more so the core among the four.

Yang Ming arrived quickly as well. Today, Yang Ming's lecture was about testing the spells he had previously taught. He wanted to see how well these disciples had mastered them. Naturally, Shen Lang and the other three easily passed, and after watching their wonderful demonstrations, everyone was convinced.

Yang Ming was naturally very satisfied with these four, but he did not give up on the other disciples either. Naturally talented disciples had the level of geniuses, but others also needed to work hard.

Afterwards, Yang Ming taught new spells and shared his experience in cultivating ghost control. These four had already mastered them, so it was just a review for them.

Shen Lang was somewhat dissatisfied with the progress of the lectures. Continuing like this was indeed a waste of time, so Shen Lang and the other three applied for self-study, and they would come back when Yang Ming taught new content.

Yang Ming understood that the progress of talented disciples was beyond that of ordinary disciples. He agreed to the four's request, but told them to ask any questions they had and prepare for the upcoming competition. The four then went to the Wanfa Tower to study on their own.

Two months passed in a hurry. During this time, Shen Lang and the other three went to the Wanfa Tower every day to study, while Yang Ming taught the other disciples. The gap between the four and the other disciples grew even wider.

In these two months, Shen Lang mastered more spells and sword techniques, and read many miscellaneous jade scrolls. This brought about a qualitative change in Shen Lang's improvement.

Shen Lang's cultivation had also advanced from the initial stage of Qi Refinement two months ago to the peak of Qi Refinement. He was only one step away from reaching the Meridian Opening stage. The difference in his mana was something even Shen Lang himself found hard to believe.

During these two months, Shen Lang also refined a ghost and a zombie, but due to his low cultivation, he could only enhance them with some simple spells.

If he waited until his cultivation was profound, and he could completely control the ghost and the zombie with his own soul, it would be like having three more clones. He could command them effortlessly, and his combat power would be even stronger.

The progress of the other three was also very obvious. An Fu's favorite was earth-based spells, just like the previous Earth Spikes. Although An Fu had a simple and honest appearance, he was cunning and treacherous when it came to battle and using spells.

Jiang Tao preferred wind-based spells, and his movements in battle were elegant. Jiang Yingxue naturally chose ice and snow spells, matching her cold demeanor.

In these two months, the four of them had also had many battles to cultivate their combat experience, of course, under Yang Ming's protection. Yang Ming was afraid that something might happen to the four, and he could also better guide them.

At the beginning, Yang Ming had the four of them pair up and compete against each other, but soon he found that Shen Lang's battles were completely one-sided.

So the other three fought against Shen Lang, and at first, there were victories and losses on both sides, but soon Shen Lang's progress began to show, gradually suppressing the other three.

An Fu and the others were certainly not pushovers, and their cooperation became more and more proficient. Shen Lang found himself in a suppressed position.

However, with various types of spells, mastery of swordsmanship, and deep reserves of knowledge, Shen Lang successfully suppressed the opponent.

At this point, the gap between the four individuals widened, and An Fu and the others gradually became accustomed to Shen Lang's leadership. Shen Lang established his core position within the small group of four.

These two months of training allowed everyone to make rapid progress, and occasionally, the names of geniuses from other classes were heard.

Yue Butao from the Lin class, Ling Jiu from the Fire class, Tu Chuan from the Mountain class, Leng Yuxuan from the Thunder class, and Luo Xiu from the Yin class, whom they had seen before, were all exceptional disciples of the Tian Gui. Their aptitude was outstanding.

The four members of the Wind class were usually low-key, so their reputation was not as loud as those of the others. The other classes only knew that there were four extremely hardworking geniuses in the Wind class, but naturally, they felt that they were not as formidable as the geniuses in their own classes.

With only one month left until the grand competition, each class began to cultivate with great enthusiasm. Whether they were genius disciples or ordinary disciples, they all hoped to achieve good results in the competition and gain the favor of the elders. It would be like ascending to heaven in one step.

Shen Lang and the others continued their usual practice. In terms of talent, these four were the most apex-level batch. In terms of daily hard work in cultivation and sparring, as well as Yang Ming's secret guidance, their progress was remarkable.

When there were only twenty days left, Shen Lang suddenly expressed his desire to seclude himself to Yang Ming. Curiously, Yang Ming asked, "Xiao Lang, now is the most crucial time before the grand competition. Why do you suddenly want to seclude yourself for cultivation?"

Looking at Yang Ming's concerned eyes, Shen Lang explained, "Recently, disciple feels that he is about to break through the Qi Refining stage, so he wants to reach the Meridian Opening stage before the grand competition."

After listening to Shen Lang's explanation, Yang Ming was filled with astonishment. He didn't expect Shen Lang to break through the Qi Refining stage so quickly. It should be noted that among the inner disciples of the Netherworld Sect, the fastest record to reach the Meridian Opening stage took five months to complete.

And Shen Lang was about to achieve it in just two months. This was an extraordinary feat. Qi Refining was the same for disciples who had just entered the sect. Perhaps disciples with better talent had a higher affinity for spiritual energy and could absorb it quickly.

Even so, to complete it in two months was still an astonishing thing.

Moreover, Yang Ming didn't know that Shen Lang's Qi Sea was much larger than others', and his rapid progress was entirely due to the three Seeds of Good Fortune in his dantian. It was estimated that no one in the Netherworld Sect expected Shen Lang to have three Seeds of Good Fortune.

With a slightly stunned expression, Yang Ming nodded and said, "Truly a gifted genius. Since that's the case, focus on your breakthrough and strive for success as soon as possible. Make a name for yourself in the grand competition!"

Afterward, Yang Ming explained some details and key points about the breakthrough. Shen Lang had already learned these things from miscellaneous records a long time ago. Now, Yang Ming was just providing more detailed instructions. Finally, Yang Ming privately gave Shen Lang some pills to assist him in his breakthrough, helping him succeed as soon as possible. After thanking Yang Ming for his concern, Shen Lang began his first breakthrough.

(End of this chapter)