"I’ve heard that the Supreme Sect and the Celestial Fragrance Sect require their disciples to cultivate out in the world. Their members can be found not just in the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty, but in other Imperial Dynasties as well. Of course, this is just hearsay. I’m not entirely clear on the specifics."
Han Bingyu continued.
As someone who frequently gathered intelligence, she knew many secrets. But she wouldn’t mention the ones she couldn’t verify.
She only brought it up because Yang Chan had asked about the Holy Lands. As for whether it was true, he would have to judge for himself.
"Hmm, we should use this time to look into these Holy Lands."
Yang Chan was quite interested in news about the major Holy Lands; this was also in preparation for joining the Merak Sacred Land in the future.
The timing wasn’t right to join now, but his future path still lay with the Merak Sacred Land.
Especially since Yang Chan had already advanced to Advanced Pharmacist, he would have to look to the Holy Lands for the even more precious Spiritual Materials.
"Understood!"
Han Bingyu nodded.
Even without a direct order from Yang Chan, she would have arranged for an investigation into anything he inquired about. Once she found useful information, she would report her findings back to him.
As the person closest to Yang Chan, Han Bingyu knew exactly how to prove her worth and ensure he kept her by his side.
After Han Bingyu finished reporting the intelligence from White Jade City, she left.
Not long after Han Bingyu left, Princess Lan Yue came to find him.
"Pharmacist Yang!"
Princess Lan Yue called out from outside the study.
"Come in."
Yang Chan set down the complete Peng Demon Bone Marrow Cleansing Scripture in his hands and watched Princess Lan Yue walk in.
Beneath the Thousand-Faced Treasure, her face was that of a demure, girl-next-door type, giving her a homely appearance.
"I have received the complete Peng Demon Bone Marrow Cleansing Scripture from the Merak Sacred Land. It includes the method for breaking through to the Martial Saint Realm."
As Princess Lan Yue came to a stop a short distance away, Yang Chan looked at her and spoke.
His words directly stated his purpose.
Hearing this, Princess Lan Yue’s expression changed slightly. She understood the meaning behind his words, but she quickly regained her composure.
Previously, they had a relationship of mutual restraint, and the Emperor’s Shocking Book, which contained a method to break through to the Martial Saint Realm, was responsible for half of her leverage.
The Emperor’s Shocking Book she had given Yang Chan was incomplete. It only detailed cultivation up to the Bone Marrow Cleansing Grandmaster Realm, specifically the Second Bone Marrow Cleansing Realm.
Previously, when she saw that Yang Chan had cultivated the Emperor’s Extreme Force even before she did, she had assumed he planned to switch to the Emperor’s Shocking Book. But his words now made it clear he had no such intention. Instead, he would cultivate the complete Peng Demon Bone Marrow Cleansing Scripture from the Merak Sacred Land.
During this time, she had also heard about the Peng Demon Bone Marrow Cleansing Scripture and knew that the complete technique was held by the Merak Sacred Land.
This also meant that the path Yang Chan was now on was a complete one.
The Emperor’s World Book she currently possessed could at most lead to the National Guardian Martial Saint Realm, and even then, it was uncertain if there were problems with the later stages of the technique.
Comparing the two, it was easy to see which was the better choice.
"Pharmacist Yang, this is the complete Emperor’s Shocking Book I prepared. It allows one to cultivate up to the National Guardian Martial Saint Realm, but the methods for cultivating as a Bone Marrow Cleansing Grandmaster and breaking through to the Martial Saint Realm are unverified."
"This Cultivation Technique was obtained from Crown Prince Yang Qian. He only cultivated to the Bone Marrow Cleansing Grandmaster Realm, so the later stages of the technique are unconfirmed."
Princess Lan Yue reacted quickly, pulling a book from her robes. It was the continuation of the Emperor’s Shocking Book.
She had been prepared for this ever since she heard the news about the Peng Demon Bone Marrow Cleansing Scripture.
When a person has a better option, they are unlikely to choose the inferior path.
For Yang Chan right now, cultivating the Emperor’s Shocking Book was the inferior path.
As for Princess Lan Yue, if the Cultivation Technique she had before could have reached the National Guardian Martial Saint Realm, she wouldn’t have switched to the Emperor’s Shocking Book either. But she had no other choice.
She wanted to aim for the highest possible limit, so she had to choose a new path.
Yang Chan, however, had other options, so he didn’t need to follow her example.
Presenting the Cultivation Technique she had prepared was a demonstration of her attitude.
She could still bring some value to Yang Chan. Beyond that, the legacy of a Top Level Pharmacist in her memories was all the capital she had left.
The Cultivation Technique was warm in Yang Chan’s hands. Princess Lan Yue had clearly been keeping it close to her body. It even carried a distinct, feminine fragrance.
Yang Chan took the technique and began to slowly look through it. To him, the Emperor’s Shocking Book was now merely a reference. Its upper limit wasn’t high—it only went up to the Martial Saint Realm—and the subsequent stages were in the hands of the Great Zhou Imperial Family. To be precise, they were in the hands of the Old Emperor, a Martial Saint himself.
At this moment, Yang Chan had no intention of clashing with a Martial Saint, especially after having witnessed a Martial Saint Level expert in action.
His current strength was still insignificant before a Martial Saint. He certainly wasn’t going to seek his own humiliation.
The contents of the Emperor’s Shocking Book were as domineering as ever. When breaking through to Bone Marrow Cleansing Grandmaster, one used the Emperor’s Extreme Force to violently shatter the bottleneck and forcibly cleanse the marrow. When breaking through to the Blood Exchange Martial Saint Realm, one had to undergo a full-body Blood Exchange and tempering. The entire process was completed through brute force.
To put it simply: charge forward directly. Break through, and you advance. Fail, and you perish utterly.
’This technique is far too brutish,’ Yang Chan thought after reading through it.
Success meant Breaking Realm; failure meant death.
It was the very image of "succeed or die trying."
"Are there no Elixirs to assist in Breaking Realm?"
After reading this, Yang Chan voiced the doubt in his mind.
If this was the case, the casualties among the Great Zhou Imperial Family must be enormous. A large number of them would die during every breakthrough attempt.
This would be especially true in the later stages of Cultivation. The human body has its limits, and exceeding them would result in a backlash that could destroy oneself.
The Emperor’s Shocking Book was far too domineering a Cultivation Technique. Only those with a special Cultivation Physique could possibly withstand such a reckless method.
"There should be Elixirs to assist in Breaking Realm, but I was never able to obtain any."
Princess Lan Yue had heard that the Old Emperor, Yang Yu, had once failed to break through to the National Guardian Martial Saint Realm but had survived. This clearly meant he had other means to ensure his body was unharmed after a failed breakthrough. That must be how he was later able to successfully break through to the Martial Saint Realm on the border battlefield, becoming the Great Zhou Imperial Dynasty’s new National Guardian Martial Saint.
"This Cultivation Technique becomes more perilous the further you progress. Rather than trying to switch to it now, you’d be better off sticking with your previous technique."
"If you get the chance later, you should choose a technique from the Merak Sacred Land instead. The Merak Sacred Land has plenty of Cultivation Techniques that can reach the National Guardian Martial Saint Realm!"