Chapter Thirteen: Taking the Form of a Divine Idol, Mending the Cultivation Art

Yang Feng never expected that participating in a special direct recruitment would come with additional rewards; to him, it was an absolute surprise.

However, applying for these funds would likely take some time, and he probably wouldn’t get them soon.

For now, the biggest problem before him was still the issue of the martial artist’s breathing technique.

Previously, he had been confident in securing a spot at one of the federation’s top martial arts universities, so he hadn’t felt a strong sense of urgency.

But now, since he was going to take the “special direct recruitment” exam, he needed to strengthen his abilities.

He had heard of the special direct recruitment before; only the absolute geniuses could participate.

Among them, there must be some monster-like talents; otherwise, it wouldn’t explain why so many excellent students from the school had taken the exam multiple times without ever achieving a passing score.

So, to be safe, he had to improve his strength!

Returning to the class group chat, all the students immediately surrounded him.

“Yang Feng, how did you get so powerful?”

“What did Teacher Shi just say to you?”

“Yang Feng, what’s your secret? Teach me!”

“Yang Feng, your physique is amazing. Can I touch it?”

...

At first, the questions were somewhat normal, but as they went on, even with two lifetimes of experience, Yang Feng found it hard to cope. Some bold girls even reached out to touch him directly, making it impossible to fend off.

Fortunately, Yang Qixin came over to help him out, and only then did he escape the ordeal.

Inside the locker room, Yang Qixin spoke with a complex expression, “Thank you!”

Yang Feng turned his head and smiled.

“We’re brothers; no need for formalities.”

“Yeah, I know. And I’ve made up my mind—not to think about romance until after the college entrance exam!”

The recent incident had left him shaken. If he couldn’t take the exam, his life would be ruined, so he was truly grateful to his brother.

As for his brother’s strength, seeing his recent changes, he wasn’t as surprised as others might have been.

...

After school in the early evening,

Yang Feng was the first to leave the school gate, heading toward the Song City Martial Artists’ Guild.

The Martial Artists’ Guild was one of the largest official organizations in this world.

Every city had a guild, which not only managed registered martial artists but also served as the place where martial artists accepted official or legally sanctioned private missions.

Moreover, all promotions for martial artists were assessed through the guild, giving it immense authority.

Yang Feng’s sole purpose in going to Song City’s guild was to obtain a cultivation method.

---

If you’re in a city and don’t know the way to the Martial Artists’ Guild, what do you do?

Besides looking at a map, just head toward the city’s most bustling district. The grandest building there will definitely be the guild!

Though this is a bit of an online joke with some exaggeration, it speaks volumes about the guild’s splendor.

Yang Feng’s home was in the old district, and he had rarely been to the guild before, but every time he did, he was amazed by its luxury!

Each visit, the guild seemed even more magnificent than the last, and this time was no exception.

The splendid hall had floor tiles shinier than mirrors at home. As he marveled, he approached the task hall window.

Perhaps because it was evening, there weren’t many people, so he quickly found a terminal.

The guild’s terminal interface was divided into national and local tasks.

National tasks required one to be a martial artist and log in with an account to view, while local tasks had no such requirement.

Yang Feng directly clicked on local tasks.

“Team hunt for second-stage mutated bears, second-stage martial artists required, reward 100,000 Federation credits.”

“Tutoring for senior high students, requires first-stage martial artists or above, two hours daily for one month, reward 30,000 Federation credits.”

“Fight sparring partner, requires first-stage martial artists or above, 5,000 Federation credits per session.”

...

Yang Feng skimmed through and saw various tasks, even some job advertisements.

He automatically ignored all of these and focused on the cultivation methods section.

This was exactly what he wanted; completing these tasks would earn him martial artists’ body tempering techniques.

But the more he looked, the deeper his frown grew.

To take these tasks, one had to be a recognized martial artist!

Although he had met the martial artist criteria, without official certification and examination, no one would acknowledge him.

The martial artist examination was held on the 15th of each month and required an advance reservation, but today was only the 2nd—waiting that long wasn’t an option.

Was he forced to ask Shi Qizheng for help?

Yang Feng frowned; he didn’t want to trouble others for everything.

He clicked on the cultivation methods section and suddenly stopped at a special task.

Task: Repair an ancient first-stage cultivation method—the Inner Alchemy Breathing Technique.

He opened the task details.

First-stage martial artist breathing technique, Inner Alchemy Breathing, an ancient cultivation method in a fragmented state, impossible to cultivate. If repaired, the guild would reward 120 points.

In the Martial Artists’ Guild, points were the real currency, as many desired items couldn’t be bought with Federation credits but only with points.

One hundred and twenty points equated to the purchasing power of 120,000 Federation credits but were even more precious!

Yang Feng’s eyes lit up as he looked at this task. He clearly remembered mastering the complete martial skill after dreaming of a mysterious palace while studying the Half-Broken Collapse Fist.

Could the breathing technique be repaired as well?

The thought made him eager to try.

He spent half an hour memorizing this broken Inner Alchemy Scripture.

Back home,

“Why are you so late today?” Lu Qing asked.

“There was some business at school, so I was late. I ate out. I’m going to my room now.”

Without waiting for his parents and Yang Zhi’s puzzled looks, he dove straight into his room and collapsed onto his bed.

Opening his eyes, Yang Feng found himself once again in the void, but this time, unlike before when there were only two bright orbs, there were now three.

The first orb represented infinite resources; in this dream, he could obtain the materials needed for cultivation.

The second orb represented the palace dream, allowing one to rapidly master a martial skill to its peak. (Since he wasn’t cultivating a new skill, this dream wasn’t selectable for now.)

The third orb now appearing contained a faintly visible temple.

Based on previous experiences, he predicted this dream might correspond to enhancing the breathing technique.

He chose the third dream.

Upon opening his eyes, he found himself inside a temple, but strangely, the deity’s seat was empty.

As he cautiously examined the surroundings, one of the statues’ seats suddenly emitted a pulling force.

Before he could react, he was drawn in and became one of the temple’s statues.

This startled Yang Feng; the feeling was indescribably unpleasant, somewhat like being imprisoned!

As he tried to struggle, he noticed his body becoming semi-transparent. The acupuncture points inside began to glow softly, illuminating him entirely.

Some of the meridians and points turned golden, arousing his curiosity.

After careful observation, he realized the pattern of the golden meridians matched the Inner Alchemy Breathing Technique he had memorized.

This discovery thrilled him. As he suspected, the third dream could help him repair the breathing technique!

The once broken Inner Alchemy Scripture was previously impossible to cultivate, but now, all the meridians required for its cultivation were lit up.

All he had to do was circulate his qi and blood along the illuminated pathways!

This was a tremendous surprise for him.

It meant he could not only repair the cultivation method but also practice it within the dream.

Wasting no time, he immediately began circulating the technique following the golden meridians.