Floating Immortal Order

Chapter 10: Your Brother Is More Handsome

Two Secret Scrolls

“Grade 5 Dao Channels? Are you sure?” The middle-aged man’s expression didn’t change, but that massive blot of ink on his painting gave away his inner turmoil.

“Yes,” Guo Renhou said, raising his head slightly to carefully check on the middle-aged man’s expression.

“Hm? What else is there?” The middle-aged man noticed Guo Renhou’s small gesture, and he picked up the painting, rolled it up, and threw it into the waste basket underneath the desk.

“The Xu Clan… might also have someone with suspected Upper Third Dao Channels! I don’t dare to say for certain, but that Dao Channel Measurement Platform constricted before expanding, and right when it was about to expand, the Xu Clan’s Great Elder, Xu Qinying, interrupted it!” Guo Renhou said in one breath, grinding his teeth tightly.

Bang!

The middle-aged man couldn’t maintain his composure any longer, and he slammed the paintbrush down onto the table.

Guo Renhou hurriedly knelt on the ground, and the bodyguards outside the door trembled, and turned a blind eye and deaf ear to the happenings within the study.

“When the Dao Channel Measurement Platform constricts before expanding, it absolutely has to be Upper Third Dao Channels! How can this be?! In this barren land known as You Province, even Grade 4 Dao Channels are extremely scarce. Much less our Ruyang Region, trapped in some remote corner of the You Province, possessing a weak fate. How in the world could a proud son of heaven with Upper Third Dao Channels appear here?!” The middle-aged man flew into a rage. This man was none other than the Patriarch of the Guo Clan, Guo Ruping.

Guo Renhou didn’t dare to speak further, kneeling there with his head lowered.

Guo Ruping’s face was gloomy. “Our Guo Clan presides over the Region, and whenever a proud son of heaven appears, we must promptly report this upwards. This is the iron law! You will personally bring people to the capital city of You Province immediately, and report this to the Prince. I will go to the Ruyang ancestral domain and report this to the old ancestor!”

“As you command, Patriarch!”

Even though the Guo Clan presided over the Ruyang Region, the difference in strength between the four great clans wasn’t that big. They didn’t have a Xiantian martial artist, and only the old ancestor of the Guo Clan was suspected to be a half-step away from the Xiantian stage.

The Ruyang Region was also just a poor, remote corner of the You Province, where ordinary struggles were infrequent. After so many years had passed, the great clans all lived in harmony, since there wasn’t much to really fight over. They were all similarly cooped up in this place, living and reproducing.

This time, someone with Upper Third Dao Channels appeared in the Xu Clan, sending shockwaves through the entire Region! Even though Xu Qinying interrupted the Dao Channel measurement at the final juncture, it didn’t stop people from talking. There were many sharp people there after all, so gradually the collective feeling among the influential clans started to become unstable, causing stormy undercurrents to brew.

Of course, this was only limited to the upper class among the influential families, and the lower class that consisted of the ordinary citizens didn’t speak much further on the matter. At most, they would speak of the terrifying strength behind the phantom image of the palm that the Great Elder of the Xu Clan displayed before their very eyes, treating it as a cool story to brag about over tea time.

At this time, within the Rain Listening Pavilion, Jin Yu and a group of people from her Jin Clan were talking. Jin Qingzhao’s wife, Lady Qing, and Jin Qingdi’s wife, Lady Xu, were both present. Aside from these ladies, there was also a little girl in a red dress standing in the Rain Listening Pavilion, which was none other than Jin Yu’er.

She didn’t follow her father, Jin Qingdi, to return to the Jin Clan. Instead, she followed Lady Xu to come and visit this aunt of hers. The Jin Clan was related to many influential clans by marriage, so even though Jin Yu was her direct paternal aunt, they weren’t very close.

Lady Xu smiled and said, “Sister Yu, after you were married off and gave birth to Sheng’er, it’s already been five years since we last saw each other. I wasn’t able to come even for Yan’er’s birth, so this time I brought some small gifts for Yan’er.”

The servants behind her brought in two chests, and when Lady Xu nodded her head, they placed them down and left.

“Sister-in-law, there’s no need for such formal courtesies!” Jin Yu said smilingly, carrying Xu Yan in her arms. Lady Qing also brought some gifts, and after the three of them exchanged pleasantries, they each sat down.

“So this is Yu’er? I’ve already heard long ago that this is our Jin Clan’s most famous little girl. Sure enough, she looks so beautiful that she must have been blessed by the heavens. So pretty and charming!” Jin Yu spotted the girl behind Lady Xu, gushing with praise.

“Thank you, Aunt,” Jin Yu’er’s sparkling eyes were accentuated by her red dress, and she bowed sensibly upon hearing praise. Although she was a girl, she wasn’t shy or timid in the least. In front of her elders, she was elegant and natural, making her seem very likable.

.

“At this time’s Dao Channel Measurement ceremony, because of Sheng’er, Yu’er wasn’t able to have her Dao Channels measured. Please forgive us for that,” Jin Yu said apologetically.to Lady Xu.

“No problem. Next year will be the Jin Clan’s Dao Channel Measurement Ceremony anyway. We brought her along this time because she felt too bored being stuck at home.” Lady Xu and Lady Qing looked at each other and laughed at the same time. 𝒃𝙚𝙙𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝒍．𝒏𝒆𝒕

“This little girl is so cute. Aunt, can I hold her?” Jin Yu’er asked upon seeing Xu Yan, who was in Jin Yu’s arms.

“Sure.”

“This is quite the good-looking one. When she grows up, she’ll definitely be a beauty in the making,” Jin Yu’er muttered profoundly in a playfully exaggerated way, acting as if she was part of the older generation. Jin Yu’er held Xu Yan in her arms as she gazed into her big crow-black eyes.

When the few married women saw this sight, they all chuckled.

Lady Qing said with a laugh, “You’re only 8 years old, and you’re calling her a beauty in the making. Then what would that make you?”

“Ah,” Jin Yu’er uttered, as if she hadn’t thought that one through. Nevertheless, she was indeed a little bit entranced just now. When she saw Xu Yan’s face, she saw her uncanny resemblance to Xu Disheng, and mumbled quietly, “She looks just like her brother.”

“What?” Her voice was too quiet just now, and no one could hear her.

Jin Yu’er turned around, her face somewhat blushing. “It’s… n-nothing,” she said hurriedly. She stole a glance up at their faces, and after she confirmed that they really hadn’t heard what she said, she felt inwardly relieved.

Jin Yu’er’s thoughts and mindset were still that of a little girl, so after she saw Xu Disheng and found him good-looking, she thoroughly remembered him despite having only met him once.

While this casual conversation was occurring in the Rain Listening Pavilion, Xu Disheng was in the Western Ravine Palace of the Xu Clan ancestral domain, choosing his Martial Technique.

“Sheng’er, do you know what Martial Techniques are?” Xu Qinying asked, his hands behind his back. In the palace hall, only Xu Qinying and Xu Disheng were present.

“According to what I know, Martial Techniques are the basic factor deciding the strength of a Houtian martial artist, and only clans possess various Martial Techniques. Also, Martial Techniques are the fundamentals of cultivation for martial artists. The higher the Rank that the Martial Technique is cultivated to, the greater the power that the body can erupt with. Once cultivated to a high enough level, one can possess extraordinary strength. But that hand phantom image that you projected, normally most martial artists would be incapable of producing that level of strength,” Xu Disheng narrated.

“Right,” Xu Qinying nodded. “Since ancient times, the Grand Chu Dynasty ruled over the 11 Provinces in their realm continuously for 10,000 years, but the ranks and hierarchy of the whole world have always been strictly upheld. The Grand Chu Dynasty divided and conferred the lands of their realm, issuing the clans various Martial Techniques so they could cultivate and govern their respective realms. Every clan, regardless of their size, was bestowed a secret and a common Martial Technique by the Dynasty. Although the names of the common Martial Technique have differing names, they are all virtually the same, differing on only a few small points. For example, for the common Martial Technique of the Xu Clan, the Heavenly Dipper Martial Technique, every Rank marks an increase in one elephant’s worth of strength to the body. Meanwhile, for the Bai Clan’s common Martial Technique, the Barbarian Ox Martial Technique, every Rank corresponds to an increase in one rhinoceros’s worth of strength. The difference really isn’t that great.”

“I’m aware of this, but what exactly are these secret Martial Techniques? Why have I never heard anyone speak of them before?” Xu Disheng asked.

“That’s because the secret Martial Techniques are extremely difficult to cultivate. Even though the Dynasty bestowed them to clans, it is very rare for someone in the entire You Province to have successfully cultivated it, not to mention this small corner of the Province, in Ruyang Region. Also, the requirements for aptitude are extremely harsh, requiring Grade 5 Dao Channels at the very minimum in order to cultivate. In the entire Ruyang Region, there are only 3 people with Grade 5 Dao Channels, including your Grandpa Chaoyang, let alone the fact that they even manage to cultivate it successfully. Therefore, normally no one mentions it.”

When Xu Qinying finished speaking, he retrieved two very ancient looking scrolls from the hidden chamber of the palace hall, and said, “One is called Shangqing Qi, and the other is called Guiyuan Qi.”

“Qi?” Xu Disheng blinked, waiting for further explanation from Xu Qinying.

“That’s right. Even though they’re called secret Martial Techniques, from my perspective they are more akin to a method of cultivating qi, which only Grade 5 Dao Channels can succeed in cultivating. The Guo Clan’s old ancestor, who has already retired for several decades, has already lived for around 120 years. Everyone says that he already passed away, but I know that he’s actually still alive. Plus, he’s already reached half a step from the Xiantian stage, and he’s right on the brink of breaking through. The fact that he’s already 120 and still lives is due in part to this Guiyuan Qi.”

“Then does he also have Grade 5 Dao Channels?” Xu Disheng asked.

“Of course, those who have below Grade 5 Dao Channels simply aren’t able to cultivate qi or sense it. The reason why everyone widely considers there to only be 3 people in the Ruyang Region with Grade 5 Dao Channels is because he had already retired several decades ago, so he naturally can’t be counted among them. Although your Grandpa Chaoyang has Grade 5 Dao Channels, he wasn’t successful in cultivating the secret Martial Technique, even after much bitter hardship. It’s truly regrettable.”