52: Chapter 52 The Art of Mending the Sky

Previously, he hadn't gone to the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall to retrieve the Treasure Trove there because his cultivation was insufficient.

But now, it was different.

He was now a powerhouse in the Bone Refining Realm, and with various functional cards at his disposal, retrieving the treasure from the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall would be as easy as pie.

As the saying goes, if heaven gives you something and you don't take it, you will be struck by divine retribution.

Chen Hu had no reason to let this Treasure Trove go.

With a thought, two cards appeared in Chen Hu's hands.

They were the invisibility card and the flight card, respectively.

He walked out of the room.

He ordered the use of the invisibility card, and the next moment, he vanished into thin air.

Then, he used the flight card.

In the next instant, his figure soared into the sky and flew toward the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall.

Soon, he arrived above the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall.

He discovered that the entire martial arts hall was empty, without a single soul in sight.

However, judging by the traces left at the scene,

a fight had taken place here.

He didn't bother to investigate what had happened to the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall; instead, he landed directly in the backyard.

He went to a banyan tree and began to dig.

At the same time, he activated his Spiritual Sense to prevent anyone from the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall from returning unexpectedly.

After digging about 1.2 meters deep under the banyan tree, a wooden box appeared.

Putting the wooden box into his Storage Ring, he quickly filled the soil back in.

He erased his footprints, used his flight ability again, and flew back home.

Less than a quarter of an hour after he left,

Master Sun Changming returned from the Zhenwu Division with his Disciples, accompanied by a Zhenwu Division chiliarch.

Upon returning to the hall, Master Sun Changming immediately led his daughter and the Disciples to take action, determined to dig three feet into every inch of the ground.

At Chen Hu's home.

Chen Hu was examining text inscribed on a piece of animal hide.

After reading the text on the animal hide,

he picked up another booklet from inside the wooden box.

Opening the booklet, Chen Hu quickly read through it as well.

The first half of this booklet recorded the experiences and insights of the former master of the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall, Sun Lifeng, in cultivating the secret technique on the animal hide.

However, the content in the latter part of the booklet was filled with regret and unwillingness.

It turned out that to successfully Cultivate the secret technique on the animal hide, one had to consume Lifespan.

At the beginning, Sun Lifeng did not know this.

It was only after cultivating the secret technique to a certain degree that he learned it would consume Lifespan.

If he stopped cultivating, having already consumed most of his Lifespan, he would die in a few years at most.

Therefore, he gambled his last few years of Lifespan, hoping to master this secret technique.

Obviously, he failed.

Thus, despite having the cultivation of Late-stage Tendon Refining, he died in his forties.

Before he died, he secretly hid the animal hide and his cultivation insights under the banyan tree in the backyard.

The reason he didn't pass the secret technique to his son was that he was worried his son would end up like him—dying young after cultivating the secret technique.

As for what kind of secret technique this was?

This secret technique was called the Heaven Mending Technique.

After mastering it, one could absorb the talent of others to strengthen one's own.

For example, if my talent was only unranked, and I mastered the Heaven Mending Technique, I could extract the talent of a person with ranked talent to strengthen my own.

Enabling me to also possess ranked talent.

Chen Hu had no intention of cultivating this Heaven Mending Technique.

If he were just an ordinary person,

he would definitely have risked trying it after obtaining this secret technique.

After all, his original talent was only a high-grade Mortal Body.

But ever since he obtained the System, his talent had risen time and again, already reaching high-grade Earth-grade.

If he were to draw a talent pill in the future, his talent could continue to improve.

Besides that, he also had the copy card; if he encountered someone with talent superior to his, he could simply copy it to obtain a stronger talent.

There was absolutely no need for him to Cultivate the Heaven Mending Technique, which required Lifespan as the price for mastery.

On the other side, at the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall.

"Father, come quickly and look!"

Sun Lingyue, who was leading people to dig in the backyard, suddenly let out a scream.

Master Sun Changming came over at the sound, followed by the Zhenwu Division chiliarch.

"What's the matter, Lingyue?"

"Father, look here!" Sun Lingyue pointed at the ground under the banyan tree. "There are traces of digging here. Someone came here to dig after we left the martial arts hall!"

"Dig it up and let's see!"

Master Sun Changming said in a deep voice.

Consequently, a Disciple immediately dug up the spot.

They dug down over a meter, and it was all fresh soil.

It was certain that not long ago, someone had dug something out from here.

Before long,

Luo Ningshuang arrived with her people.

After her subordinates inspected the soil and the pit, they reached a conclusion: "Division Chief, a wooden box was hidden here before!"

Luo Ningshuang instinctively looked at Master Sun Changming.

"Division Chief, I really didn't know there was something hidden here!" Master Sun Changming immediately explained.

"Someone!"

Luo Ningshuang ordered, "Send people to ask around the neighborhood and see if anyone infiltrated the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall before Master Sun returned!"

"Yes!"

The Zhenwu Guards immediately took the order and left.

Unfortunately, after questioning everyone in the vicinity, they did not obtain any useful information.

In the study in the backyard of the martial arts hall.

Sun Lingyue said with a tone of complaint, "Father, why do you think Grandfather hid something in the backyard without telling us?"

"Your grandfather must have had his reasons!"

Master Sun Changming defended his deceased father, though he also harbored some resentment toward him in his heart.

Why didn't you tell me if you hid something?

I am your only son.

Sun Lingyue wanted to say something more, but Master Sun Changming glared at her, so she had to swallow her words.

"Alright, it's getting late. Go back and get some rest early!"

Master Sun Changming waved his hand.

"Yes, daughter will take her leave!"

Sun Lingyue pouted and left the study.

Master Sun Changming, however, couldn't sleep. He didn't understand why his father would rather die with the secret than tell him, his son.

Now, it was a fine mess; the secret technique his father left behind had been taken by an outsider.

He, as the son, hadn't gained anything.

Even if that secret technique was difficult to Cultivate, it could have been used to trade for cultivation resources with the Zhenwu Division.

Suddenly,

he thought of something that didn't feel right.

His father was only in his forties before he died.

That definitely counted as dying young.

"Could it be that one's Lifespan shortens after cultivating that secret technique?"

The more Master Sun Changming thought about it, the more likely he felt it was.

In his memory, his father loved him very much as a son.

It made no sense not to leave good things to him.

It was precisely because that secret technique was harmful that he hadn't left it to him.

The next morning.

Chen Hu headed toward the Third Battle Hall with a calm expression.

After arranging the work for the hall, he returned to his office to Cultivate.

Not long after,

the hall became lively.

As it turned out, two pieces of news had spread.

First, Master Sun Changming, the master of the Sun Family Martial Arts Hall, had disbanded the hall and joined the Zhenwu Division with his Personal Disciple and daughter.

Second, Gang Leader Du Zaishan of the Wild Wolf Gang had mysteriously disappeared, and now the Wild Wolf Gang was leaderless.

Before long,

someone came from the General Hall to summon Chen Hu to the General Hall for a meeting.

Chen Hu immediately set off.

He estimated that the so-called meeting was about the Wild Wolf Gang.

Upon arriving at the gate of the General Hall, Chen Hu happened to bump into Hall Master Ma Zhiyuan, who was arriving from another direction.

Before he could speak, Hall Master Ma Zhiyuan said in a sarcastic tone, "Chen Hu, you've climbed quite fast. To be on equal footing with me so quickly—I wonder if you can actually hold onto your position!"