67: Chapter 67 Combat Power Enhancement

In the Minor Competition half a month later, Outer Sect Disciples at Qi Refining Level 3 or above can participate.

With his current strength, if he went all out, he might be able to enter the top hundred.

But if there are rewards for the top hundred, what about the top ten? The top three?

Wouldn't the rewards be even better?

If he could make a stunning debut, he would be able to obtain more resources and grow faster.

He needed a trump card.

A trump card that could turn the tide of battle at a critical moment.

With this thought, his mind and body sank into himself.

[Current Host Mental Energy: 20 points]

[Single Basic Simulation Cost: 10 points]

Since the last simulation, he had saved up two simulation opportunities.

He originally wanted to save them for emergencies, but now it seemed it was time to use them.

[Do you want to start the Reincarnation Simulation?]

"Start!"

[Ding! Consuming 10 points of Mental Energy, Reincarnation Simulation starting!]

[Linking to world... Link successful]

[Simulation World: Mid-Magic · Spirit-Martial World (Martial Arts and Spiritual Power coexist, Entering the Dao through Martial Arts, the Fusion of Spirit and Martial Arts)]

[World Background: Tianwu Continent · Eastern Region · Qingmu Sect]

[Simulation starting...]

When he opened his eyes, he was facing a sea of emerald green bamboo.

A breeze blew past, making the bamboo leaves rustle, carrying a crisp scent of vegetation.

In the distance, several buildings with green tiles and white walls could be faintly seen, hidden deep within the bamboo forest.

"Senior Brother Lin, Uncle-Master Fang wants you to go to the front hall."

A young child with his hair tied in knots stood before him, speaking in a clear, crisp voice.

Lin Yue.

This was his name in this life.

Memories flooded in like a tide: his parents died early, he was adopted by the Qingmu Sect at age eight, and because his Wood Spiritual Root Aptitude was decent, he was assigned to the outer Sect to Cultivate. This year he was sixteen, at Qi Refining Level 4.

Qingmu Sect, a medium-sized Sect in the Eastern Region of the Tianwu Continent, famous for Spiritual Plants and Wood Element Cultivation Techniques.

But this Sect was different from ordinary Spiritual Plant Sects.

They emphasized "Entering the Dao through Martial Arts, the Fusion of Spirit and Martial Arts."

Disciples had to Cultivate spiritual power as well as temper their Martial Skills, fusing the two together as the correct path.

Lin Yue opened his eyes, adapting to this body.

Wood Spiritual Root, Medium Grade.

The Aptitude was slightly better than his original body's before its improvement, but it was still limited.

Compared to his High Grade wood Spiritual Root after the improvement, it was indeed much worse.

He stood up, walked through the bamboo forest, and arrived at the front hall.

In the hall stood a middle-aged Cultivator with a thin face and a steady aura, at the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.

It was Uncle-Master Fang, who had adopted him.

"Yue'er," Uncle-Master Fang looked at him with a gentle gaze.

"How is your practice of the 'Green Wood Art' coming along?"

"Reporting to Junior Martial Uncle, I have reached the fourth level."

Lin Yue said respectfully.

Uncle-Master Fang nodded and took out a thin booklet from his sleeve, handing it to him.

"This is the 'Thirteen Styles of Qingmu', our Sect's basic Martial Skill.

You are already at Qi Refining Level 4, so it's time to start practicing martial arts.

Remember, although our Qingmu Sect is famous for Spiritual Plants, the true core is the unity of spirit and martial arts.

Spiritual Plants nourish the body, and martial arts protect the Dao; both are indispensable."

Lin Yue took the booklet and opened it; inside was a set of Martial Skills primarily focused on fists and palms, totaling thirteen styles, each paired with a method for circulating spiritual power.

"This Disciple will keep it in mind."

From that day on, Lin Yue began day after day of cultivation.

In the early morning, he practiced the 'Thirteen Styles of Qingmu' in the bamboo forest.

The first style, second style, third style... each style required fusing spiritual power into his fists and feet, striking with the characteristic endurance and toughness of the 'Wood' element.

During the day, he worked in the spiritual fields, tending to the few plots of Spiritual Plants assigned to him by the Sect.

This was the tradition of the Qingmu Sect.

Nourishing cultivation through labor, perceiving the vitality of plants and trees during work.

At night, he sat in meditation to Cultivate the 'Green Wood Art', nurturing his spiritual power.

The days were as plain as water, yet incredibly fulfilling.

Three months later, he reached the entry level of the 'Thirteen Styles of Qingmu'.

Half a year later, he had mastered all thirteen styles.

A year later, he began to try fusing the thirteen styles to create his own combo Moves.

This year, he was seventeen years old, at Qi Refining Level 5.

Uncle-Master Fang came to inspect his progress, and after watching him finish a set of punches, he remained silent for a long time before speaking.

"Your fist technique is somewhat different."

Lin Yue said frankly, "This Disciple made a few changes on his own."

Uncle-Master Fang looked at him, a flicker of complex light passing through his eyes.

In that light, there was gratification, and also a hint of... pity.

"You have great Comprehension Ability."

"It's a pity your Spiritual Root Aptitude... is only Medium Grade. If you had a High Grade Spiritual Root, perhaps you could go further."

Lin Yue did not speak.

He had long since grown accustomed to such evaluations.

Two years later, Lin Yue was nineteen years old, at Qi Refining Level 6.

This year, the Sect held the Inner Sect Disciple Selection Tournament.

Outer Sect Disciples at Qi Refining Level 6 or above could sign up to participate.

The top three could enter the inner Sect and take a Golden Core Immortal Master as their teacher.

Lin Yue signed up.

On the day of the competition, he encountered a formidable opponent.

A Senior Brother at Qi Refining Level 7, with a High Grade Spiritual Root, who had practiced martial arts since childhood and used the 'Thirteen Styles of Qingmu' with superb skill.

After thirty Moves, Lin Yue was defeated.

Uncle-Master Fang watched from the sidelines, and after the match, he only patted Lin Yue's shoulder without saying anything.

But Lin Yue understood the meaning in his eyes.

Limited by Aptitude, do not force it.

He did not argue, but silently returned to the bamboo forest to continue practicing his punches.

Two years later, Lin Yue was twenty-one years old, at Qi Refining Level 7.

Another five years passed, and Lin Yue reached Qi Refining Level 9.

In the year he turned twenty-eight, he successfully reached Foundation Establishment.

On the day of his Foundation Establishment, Uncle-Master Fang finally showed a genuine smile.

He stood by the bamboo forest, watching Lin Yue walk out of the quiet room where he had achieved Foundation Establishment, and said softly, "Good."

Just that one word.

But Lin Yue knew that this was the highest praise he could give.

After Foundation Establishment, Lin Yue's cultivation speed slowed down significantly.

The limitations of his Spiritual Root Aptitude were like an invisible shackle, firmly binding him to the level of "mediocre talent."

But he was not in a hurry.

He still practiced his punches in the bamboo forest every morning, tended to the spiritual fields during the day, and meditated at night.

Year after year, spring went and autumn came; the bamboo forest remained the same, but the person had gradually aged.

When he was thirty-five, Uncle-Master Fang passed away.

Before he died, he held Lin Yue's hand and said with difficulty.

"Yue'er... you, you are the most hardworking Disciple I have ever seen... what a pity, what a pity..."

He did not finish before closing his eyes.

Lin Yue knelt by the bed for a long time without getting up.

Uncle-Master Fang was buried on the back mountain, next to the bamboo forest he had personally planted.

Lin Yue kept watch by the grave for seven days and planted a Spirit Tea Tree.

Just like in the simulation world, this was his memorial to Uncle-Master Fang.

Three years later, he left the Qingmu Sect and began to travel.

He visited many places in the Eastern Region of the Tianwu Continent.

He saw many Sects, met many Cultivators, and experienced many life-and-death battles.

His 'Thirteen Styles of Qingmu' were continuously refined and evolved through repeated actual combat.

What was originally just a basic Martial Skill had been infused with his own insights and killing Moves learned from the brink of death, becoming a combat technique unique to him.

He gave it a name.

'Green Wood Fist'.

At the age of fifty-five, he encountered the greatest crisis of his life.

A Foundation Establishment Late-Stage Yao Beast attacked the small town where he was staying; he stepped in to stop it, fighting a hard battle for three days and three nights, finally killing it at the cost of being heavily injured.

That battle allowed him to comprehend the true essence of "the weak defeating the strong."

It did not lie in the refinement of Moves, but in the grasping of "vitality."

The power of the Wood Element values vitality most.

As long as there is still a breath left, one can turn defeat into victory.

He integrated this insight into the 'Green Wood Fist', creating the strongest style.

"Withered Wood Meets Spring."

This style exchanges heavy injury for vitality, finding life in a dead end.

By the age of ninety, Lin Yue was at the Foundation Establishment Peak, only one step away from the Golden Core.

But in the end, he did not take that step.