Chapter 97: Chapter 83: Choose a Secret Technique Again, Gain Strength Through Hardship_2

“What’s so bad about enduring some hardship?”

Zhou Daoquan echoed Zhou Chun’s words in an odd tone, then looked at him with a smirk and said, “I hope you still think so after you begin your cultivation!”

This action made Zhou Chun feel a little uneasy, and he began to question whether he had really made the right choice.

But he soon dismissed these distracting thoughts and became resolute once again.

To endure the pains that others cannot, is to surpass the common man!

Zhou Chun believed firmly that he could do it!

After deciding on two secret techniques, Zhou Daoquan, considering his need to be stationed at Pagoda Peak for work, allowed him to take the secret technique manuals back with him to ponder and practice.

However, if he were to leave Jiufeng Ridge, he must return the secret technique manuals to the Book Collection Tower first to prevent them from being lost in case of an accident outside.

This exceptional convenience was clearly granted because his status was now different from before.

Zhou Chun was well aware of this.

Therefore, after thanking Zhou Daoquan repeatedly, he took the secret technique manuscripts back to Pagoda Peak, contentedly.

Not long after, when Zhou Chun began trying to cultivate Xinjin Sword Qi, he finally understood the meaning behind Zhou Daoquan’s words.

When he first started practicing the secret technique, he only slightly operated it to absorb some of the Golden Qi contained in ordinary iron.

But even so, the pain of the Golden Qi entering his body, persistent like continuous pricking of needles, made him instantly break into a cold sweat, with veins on his forehead throbbing.

After gritting his teeth and persevering for a while, he eventually could not bear it any longer and stopped practicing.

In the following days, Zhou Chun attempted to practice Xinjin Sword Qi every day, but he was unable to complete even a single normal cycle of cultivation.

Many times, the pain was so unbearable that he contemplated giving up, especially after being injured by the Golden Qi in his meridians on two occasions.

But whenever he thought of the difficulty in obtaining the secret technique, the descriptions of its power in the classics, and Zhou Daoquan’s words, Zhou Chun would grit his teeth and continue to persevere.

He had already talked big, giving up now would be like slapping his own face, wouldn’t it?

Also, if he were to give up on this secret technique, wouldn’t that mean he couldn’t endure hardship?

If he couldn’t bear the hardship that others could not, how could he convince the elders of the family that he could achieve what others could not, to become a cut above the rest?

Whether for the sake of honor or actual benefit, Zhou Chun had no choice but to grind his teeth and keep going.

This Xinjin Sword Qi secret technique, he had to make it succeed!

Persistence pays off, and after two or three months of near-death struggles, Zhou Chun finally began to grow accustomed to the pain of the Golden Qi entering his body.

His Greater Yin Lung Meridian in his right hand became more resilient from repeated injuries and recoveries, managing to gradually accommodate the Golden Qi.

At that moment, he finally completed a cycle of secret art cultivation and successfully sealed a trace of the Golden Qi in the Greater Yin Lung Meridian of his right hand.

As they say, the beginning is always the hardest; after his first successful attempt, subsequent successes in cultivation became much easier.

To keep it a secret, aside from the Clan Leader Zhou Daoyi and Third Elder Zhou Daoquan, no fourth person knew that Zhou Chun was practicing Xinjin Sword Qi.

Once the secret technique was mastered, it would become his greatest trump card!

As spring went and winter came, flowers bloomed and withered.

In the blink of an eye, seven years had passed since Zhou Chun came to this world.

In these seven years, he had fully integrated into this world, thoroughly considering himself a member of it.

Now, every word and action, every move he made, was no different from a native of this world.

The Zhou Family cultivators and clan members had also fully adapted to him as he now was, no one thought about what he used to be like anymore.

And as seven years passed, Zhou Chun had reached the age of twenty-eight, with his cultivation level having broken through from the sixth layer of the Qi Refinement Realm to the tenth layer.

Four levels in seven years, such a cultivation speed astonished many Zhou Family Cultivators.

But those who truly knew the situation were not surprised at all.

Because this pace was completely based on the premise of an accumulation of a significant amount of elixirs.

However, because Zhou Chun had taken too many elixirs in the past few years, he now clearly felt that the effects of the elixirs on him had diminished significantly, and he had developed a considerable resistance to them.

Therefore, if he didn’t want to waste the elixirs, he would have to stop taking them for a while.

Otherwise, if his body’s resistance became too high, when he took the Foundation Establishment Pill to challenge the Foundation Establishment Stage, the effectiveness of the pill would be greatly reduced, which would truly be a case of losing much by trying to gain a little.

One day, Zhou Chun was invited to the home of his tenth brother, Zhou Zhengyong, to witness the testing of the Spirit Root Aptitude of Zhengyong’s eldest son.

Just half a year ago, Zhengyong’s partner, Sun Yujiao, had successfully given birth to a healthy baby boy, whose nickname was Lan’er.

The reason for only giving a nickname at this point was the child’s Spirit Root Aptitude had not yet been tested.

The Zhou Family was a family of cultivators, and the generational names of the Zhou Family were only used by cultivators.

Zhengyong’s son would only be given a name with a generational marker if he possessed Spirit Root Aptitude.

Otherwise, any random name would suffice.

Testing for Spirit Root Aptitude was like opening a blind box; before the box was opened, no one knew what was inside.

Zhengyong and his wife felt that it would be better to have a familiar friend present to witness the event, fearing something unforeseen might occur if they were alone.

According to Zhengyong, Zhou Chun’s fortunes were flourishing at the moment, and having him present might just bring some good luck to his son.

Zhou Chun naturally would not refuse such a request.

By the time he arrived at Zhengyong’s home, Sun Yujiao had already soothed her son to sleep.

Then, looking at the sleeping baby, both Zhou Zhengyong and his wife showed nervous expressions and exchanged glances, hesitating for a long moment without taking action.

“How about you do it, Thirteenth Brother?”

Zhengyong scratched his head, looking at Zhou Chun with a conflicted expression.

As the child’s father, he naturally wanted to be the one to test his son’s Spirit Root Aptitude.

However, he also feared that if the results were disappointing, he might regret it for the rest of his life.

So he was caught in a dilemma.

“Brother Yong, you’re putting me in a tough spot!”

Zhou Chun laughed bitterly and shook his head as he replied, “I can help you with anything else, Brother Yong, but when it comes to this matter, as the child’s father, you really are the most appropriate person to handle it.”

As he spoke, Sun Yujiao also quickly nodded in agreement, “Thirteenth Brother is right, my husband, don’t hesitate anymore. Haven’t we already agreed? Whatever the result, we must accept it calmly!”

The words of a good brother and his wife seemed to give Zhou Zhengyong the courage and confidence he needed.

After a moment’s hesitation, he nodded firmly and said, “Alright then, I’ll do it!”

Without further doubt, he formed a spell with his hands and executed the “Spirit Testing Technique,” specifically designed to assess Spirit Root Aptitude.

Although the “Spirit Testing Technique” had a singular purpose, it was a genuine first-order superior spell.

If Zhengyong’s cultivation level hadn’t broken through to the ninth layer of Qi Refinement last year, he wouldn’t have been able to perform this spell at all.

As Zhengyong performed the spell incantation, a Dharma Sphere formed of countless white runes took shape in his hands and was then flung into the body of the baby on the table.

Wah!!

The sleeping baby seemed to sense something, suddenly letting out a loud cry.

But at that moment, Zhou Zhengyong and his wife paid no attention to this minor detail, as both were staring intently at their child without blinking an eye.

As the white Dharma Sphere entered the baby’s body, a stream of pure spiritual light shot forth from the top of the baby’s head.

The spiritual light was a mix of blue and red and continued to rise for about five feet before stopping its momentum and gradually dissipating.

Seeing this, Zhou Chun immediately congratulated the couple with a smile, “Congratulations, congratulations to Brother Yong and Sister-in-law. Not only does your nephew possess a Spirit Root Aptitude, but it’s also a mid-grade Spirit Root Aptitude of the wood and fire attributes. Brother Yong, your lineage has a successor!”

Upon hearing his congratulatory words, Zhengyong’s smile could no longer be contained.

He burst into joyful laughter, shouting, “Hahaha, he has mid-grade Spirit Root Aptitude, my son has mid-grade Spirit Root Aptitude! I, Zhou Zhengyong, also have a successor!!”