16: Chapter 16: Shimotsuki Bukan

"Auntie Zhao, I appreciate your kindness." You brushed the wood shavings off your hands, your tone gentle but firm, "But this matter, please do not mention it again."

Auntie Zhao was stunned for a long moment, let out two dry laughs, and left sheepishly, carrying the osmanthus cake.

After that, no one dared to come and play matchmaker for you again.

But your days were truly too boring, so you made a decision—to open a Shuangyue Martial Arts Hall.

Outside the simulation.

Lin Shuangwan looked at the image in the mirror and breathed a sigh of relief.

She was truly afraid that 'she' might do something foolish.

However, she had not expected the result of creating her own sword technique, but upon careful reflection, it made sense. With five Martial Skills at Perfection and the talent of a Martial Arts Prodigy, the version of her in the simulation certainly had the foundation for it.

"Frost Moon Sword Technique..." She silently recited the name in her heart.

As for whether she was Innate or Acquired when the simulation ended, she didn't really care; regardless, given her accumulation in the simulation, as long as her Meridians recovered, a Breakthrough would just be a matter of a day.

The scene continued.

There were two reasons for opening the Shuangyue Martial Arts Hall.

First, you were bored. With your temperament, and since there were no mobile phones to play with here, letting you sit around doing nothing every day was truly torture.

Second, you wanted to find a channel to contact more Martial Artists. No matter how refined the Martial Skills in your hands were, they were ultimately limited to a few. In the realm of martial arts, working behind closed doors would sooner or later lead to a dead end. Seeing more of others' Cultivation Technique styles would also be beneficial for your own understanding. Perhaps you might even stumble upon a method to repair your Meridians.

You did it as soon as you thought of it.

You spent a month renting a courtyard in the south of the city that came with a martial arts practice field. You added weapon racks, wooden stakes, and sandbags, and hung up the plaque for "Shuangyue Martial Arts Hall."

Since your intention was not to make money, the tuition fees were set very low, only half a tael of silver per month, which was not even one-third of the "Iron Fist Martial Arts Hall" next door.

The effect of the low price was immediate. In the first month of opening, twelve students came. Most were children from ordinary families in the city, a few were from small merchant families, and two had transferred from other martial arts halls after studying for a while and finding them too expensive.

You taught basic Cultivation Techniques at the Acquired level and simplified versions of Martial Skills. You held nothing back; you corrected what needed correcting and added training where necessary. The level of care you put in surprised the students—how could you teach so earnestly for such cheap tuition?

Three months later, three of your first batch of students touched the threshold of the Acquired Early Stage. The news spread, attracting a new wave of students.

The reputation of the "Shuangyue Martial Arts Hall" gradually spread.

The masters of other martial arts halls also noticed you. But after inquiring around, they found that you were a woman, only taught Acquired-level Cultivation Techniques, and your fees were so low it was like charity; you weren't competing with them for high-end clients at all. A few masters met up, decided you couldn't stir up any trouble, and couldn't be bothered to deal with you.

However, another kind of trouble came knocking.

Although you always wore a veil when going out, your figure and temperament were there, and coupled with those eyes revealed above the veil, anyone who wasn't blind could tell that the face beneath the veil couldn't be bad.

A few young Martial Artists who thought themselves dashing and romantic started running to your martial arts hall every other day, using the pretexts of "sparring" and "asking for advice" to get close to you.

Fortunately, you always wore a veil, so they couldn't be sure of your appearance. Combined with your cold attitude, after testing the waters a few times, they gave up.

Your ears were finally much quieter.

Days passed by like this one by one.

Two years.

The number of students at the Shuangyue Martial Arts Hall grew from the initial twelve to over sixty, and many of them had a Breakthrough to the Acquired realm. Your reputation in the Martial Forest circles of Qingyang County was established—although it wasn't a top-tier large martial arts hall, it won out due to solid teaching and fair tuition.

And you hadn't been idle these two years either. By sparring and exchanging pointers with instructors from other martial arts halls, you learned many new Martial Skills. Although most were at the Acquired level, you had mastered the essence of each one and integrated them into your own martial arts system.

One day, you received an invitation.

With a gold-stamped cover and polite phrasing: Magistrate Liu's son, Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue, had reached a Breakthrough to the Innate realm. Three days later, a banquet would be held at Wangjiang Tower to celebrate, and all masters of martial arts halls and fellow Martial Artists in Qingyang County were cordially invited to attend.

You were originally not interested in such social engagements. But one name on the invitation list caught your attention—Sun Boyan, the master of "Feiyun Martial Arts Hall."

This old man had a footwork technique called "Youlong Step." You had seen it during an accidental sparring match; it was extremely exquisite and even more advanced in flexibility than your Snake Step. You had been eyeing this footwork for a long time and had always wanted to find an opportunity to trade for it, but the old man had a strange personality and didn't see people easily.

Since he was going to attend the banquet, then you would go too.

Three days later, Wangjiang Tower.

The entire restaurant had been booked by the Liu family. The entrance was hung with red silk lanterns, and attendants bustled back and forth, serving wine and dishes like flowing water. More than a dozen tables were set up in the main hall on the second floor, and basically all the notable martial arts hall masters and Martial Artists in Qingyang County had arrived. There were also a few Jianghu figures from other places who had come to offer congratulations, dressed in various ways; some wore swords, some carried sabers, standing in groups of two or three chatting.

You found a seat in a corner and sat down. Your gaze swept through the crowd, and you quickly locked onto Sun Boyan. The old man was sitting by the window, his gray hair tied up meticulously. He hadn't even touched the wine cup in front of him and was closing his eyes, dozing off.

Just as you were preparing to go over, there was a sudden commotion at the top of the stairs.

Someone announced loudly: "Young Master Liu has arrived—"

The noise of the entire hall instantly quieted down by a third.

A young man walked up from the stairs.

He was in his early twenties, with a slender build, handsome features, sword-like eyebrows, and eyes that held a hidden brilliance without showing any sharp edge. He was wearing a moon-white martial robe with a jade belt around his waist. He carried no sword, and his gait was steady and unhurried. His Innate True Qi was restrained, but the air of confidence in his every gesture already set him apart from most people present.

Following behind him was a middle-aged man—Magistrate Liu himself. He was in his forties, with a kind face and a short beard. He was not wearing official robes but casual clothes, making him look more like a wealthy man.

Magistrate Liu walked to the center of the hall and bowed to everyone in a circle.

"I am honored by everyone's attendance; I am very happy today!" Magistrate Liu beamed, "My son, Jiangyue, has been practicing for many years and has finally touched the threshold of the Innate realm; it's nothing to be ashamed of anymore. Today, we are holding this banquet, not to discuss official business, but only to discuss the Dao of martial arts. Everyone, please eat and drink to your heart's content!"

Everyone raised their glasses one after another.

"Magistrate Liu is too modest. Young Master Liu has entered the Innate realm at such a young age; his future is limitless!"

"That's right. In our generation in Qingyang County, if Young Master Liu claims second place, I'm afraid no one would dare claim first."

"Magistrate Liu, you have taught your son well!"

Magistrate Liu waved his hand with a smile: "Too much praise, too much praise. He still has a long way to go. Come, come, everyone sit, everyone sit."

Chief Constable Liu Jiangyue stood by his father's side, bowing slightly with a humble expression; he was neither overly enthusiastic nor pretentious.

You didn't go to join the excitement. Taking advantage of the fact that everyone's attention was on the Liu father and son, you carried your wine cup to Sun Boyan's table.

The old man was dozing off. Feeling someone approach, he opened one eye.

"Senior Sun." You sat opposite him and got straight to the point, "I would like to trade a Cultivation Technique with you."

Sun Boyan opened both eyes and looked you up and down.

"From the Shuangyue Martial Arts Hall?" He snorted, "I've heard of you. A little girl, but you teach quite decently. Trading a Cultivation Technique? What do you have that you can offer for a trade?"

"I have created a sword technique myself." You didn't beat around the bush, "You can take a look first to see if it is worth your 'Youlong Step'."

Sun Boyan scoffed: "Self-created? A sword technique created by a Post-Heaven Peak? Little girl, do you know that even Grandmaster-level experts don't dare to easily attempt something like creating their own Martial Skills..."