Chapter 107 – Night Meeting
After midnight came about, Liu Ming opened his eyes and silently left his dwelling. He proceeded to fly away from the Nine Infant Mountain.
In the time it takes to have a cup of tea, he descended in a forest that was three kilometers away from the Barbarian Ghost Sect’s main peak.
In an open field not too far away from him, a fat old man, “Martial Uncle Ruan”, was standing there with his hands behind his back.
“This disciple greets Master!” Liu Ming bowed and displayed an extremely deferential expression.
“You arrived quite fast but we still have to wait a short while!” Martial Uncle Ruan said indifferently.
“What? Did Martial Uncle invite someone else?” Liu Ming was slightly startled.
“Yes. He is someone who also cultivates the Dark Bone Method, just like you. Of course, he started cultivating a few years before you so his insights to the Dark Bone Method are something that you can’t compare with.” The fat old man let out a sudden laugh while he replied.
When Liu Ming heard this, he was startled, but not a trace of his shock appeared on his face as he nodded his head.
After waiting a short while, a sonic boom resounded in the nearby sky. Another gray cloud descended, and from atop, someone jumped off.
“It’s you.”
When this person saw Liu Ming’s features, his face instantly changed. Unexpectedly, it was the large, bald man who had nearly lost his life during the fight with Liu Ming earlier in the day.
“So it was Senior Gu; this truly is a coincidence.” Liu Ming was also very astonished, but a trace of understanding soon surfaced.
It was no wonder why he had vaguely felt an indescribable familiar feeling during the day. The reason was because Gu Jue’s Cultivation Method was the same as his.
“The person who you said also cultivated the Dark Bone Method turned out to be Junior Bai huh…” Gu Jue’s face turned somewhat unsightly as he turned his head to Martial Uncle Yuan to speak.
“Although you started cultivating the Dark Bone Method a few years before him, after experiencing the competition earlier today, you should understand that your strength is inferior to this Junior Bai.” The fat old man let out a laugh.
“Hmph, that’s because I didn’t have a Totem. If I possessed a Totem, why would I have bothered using the Baleful Blood Ghost Bone Sword which consumes a large amount of Fa Li? Furthermore, I wouldn’t have been so easily defeated.” Gu Jue rubbed his bald head and seemed somewhat frustrated as he spoke.
From listening to the tone of his voice, it seemed that he wasn’t very respectful to this fat old man.
When Liu Ming saw this, a trace of a smile appeared on his face while he came to a slight understanding.
“Junior Bai’s Totem was not bestowed by the sect; it was retrieved by his own means. Okay, enough nonsense. You should know the reason I called you here for.” A sudden darkness emerged on the fat old man’s face as he spoke.
“You want to ask me about my Great Controlling Bone Technique, right? The effect of controlling ghost bones was something that I inadvertently discovered after experimenting. Otherwise, during the Large Competition, I wouldn’t harbor any thoughts of entering the top ten disciples. However, I didn’t expect to be obstructed by Junior Bai who also cultivated the Dark Bone Method. Nonetheless, this isn’t too bad either. Others have mistaken my cultivation technique to be the so-called “Great Controlling Bone Technique”, therefore in the future, I can enjoy the feeling of being heavily valued.” Gu Jue said in an unperturbed manner.
“Hmph, did you really believe that you were the first one to discover that the Dark Bone Method could control ghost bones? As long as one cultivates the Dark Bone Method to the fourth level of maturity, anybody who cultivates this method would discover this effect.” Martial Uncle Ruan let out a harrumph in reply.
“What? I wasn’t the first to discover this? Why haven’t I seen anyone display this ability in the past?” After Gu Jue heard this, he was overcome with shock.
Liu Ming became even more dumbstruck.
The opponent’s ability to control ghost bones unexpectedly was the ability obtained by cultivating the Dark Bone Method to the fourth level. If this was the case, once he started cultivating the method at the fourth level, he would also possess this ability.
“When you returned, didn’t you feel an incomparably aching feeling in all of your bones? It wasn’t until now that they returned to normal right?” Martial Uncle Ruan didn’t directly reply instead his face got more gloomy as he asked a question.
“That really did happen! So what? As long as I rest a few days, nothing should be wrong.” Gu Jue vaguely felt that something was amiss, but he braced himself as he gathered his courage to ask a question.
“If that genuinely was the case, then I would have no need to be worried. This matter was something that I forgot to inform you about in the previous few days when I was in secluded cultivation. Among the previous disciples who cultivated the Dark Bone Method, the reason why some people didn’t use this ability was because they hadn’t properly consolidated the fourth stage of the method. If used before the fourth stage, the ability will cause both their corporeal body and their life to take severe damage. After all, the ability will only come into fruition after one cultivates his corporeal body to a certain stage. Your reckless use of this ability today, further equipped with the condensing of the Baleful Blood Ghost Bone Sword, will most likely shorten your lifespan by ten years. If something seriously wrong were to happen to you, how could I explain myself to your mother?” The fat old man’s face changed and he suddenly began chiding him in a low voice.
TL: Corporeal body = muscles etc.
“It’s only a reduction of my lifespan by ten years. It’s not a big deal. As for my mother, there’s no way for her to know about this matter. After all, if I didn’t cultivate the Dark Bone Method imparted by uncle at that time, there’s no way that I could have lived to today.” The large, bald man went silent for a while and looked at Liu Ming once before forcibly laughing in reply.
“As long as you understand, then it’s fine. That day, I was forced into a helpless situation where I could only impart the Dark Bone Method to save your life. It wasn’t for you to use in an intense fight to obtain victory. On another note, this Dark Bone Method has many flaws and if you cannot solve them, you will not be able to enter the Spirit Master realm. Why don’t you go back first. I still have some things to discuss with Martial Nephew Bai, alone.” The fat old man’s expression finally softened as he gave an instruction.
This time, the big, bald man was much more obedient. After nodding his head, he summoned his cloud and flew away.
Liu Ming was somewhat baffled as he stood in his original position.
“You should now understand my relationship with Gu Jue; there’s no need for me to further explain, right?” The fat old man’s gaze ultimately rested on Liu Ming as he calmly asked a question.
“Disciple naturally understands Senior Gu and Martial Uncle’s relationship. However, regarding the Dark Bone Method’s defect, what’s the matter with this? Martial Uncle wouldn’t deliberately mention it in front of me, right?” Liu Ming let out a bitter laugh before asking a question.
“Hehe, I knew that Martial Nephew was a smart person. Truthfully, the reason why I called the two of you here together was to conveniently get you two to know each other. After all, the amount of people in the sect who cultivate this method is limited to only you two. Moreover, I should naturally inform you of a few matters regarding this method and explain a few things, since you have cultivated the Dark Bone Method to near the fourth level. Otherwise, if you were to rashly break into the Spirit Master realm, that could very well be the day of your death.” The fat old man let out a laugh as he spoke.
“I would like to hear Martial Uncle’s guidance!” Liu Ming’s heart jumped.
Ever since he realized that the first few levels of the Dark Bone Method didn’t contain any bottlenecks, he vaguely felt that something was amiss.
If this Cultivation Method was this great, the sect would have definitely spread the method around for everyone. Why would Martial Uncle Ruan pass it on to him in such secrecy?
“Let me tell you about the Dark Bone Method’s origin first. This method was fortuitously retrieved by our sect’s Six Yin Master; that old geezer expended a large amount of effort but ultimately only managed to interpret the first three levels of this method. A small portion of the fourth level was interpreted by one of our sect’s other ancestors; the other large portion was interpreted by me after tens of years of meticulous exertion. Twenty years ago, in order to test this method I began to impart it to numerous Three Spiritual Pulse disciples to secretly cultivate. These disciples were like you — most of them reached the peak stage of the Late Spirit Apostle realm. However, when they attempted to advance into the Spirit Master realm, their bodies exploded and they all died without exception.” When the fat old man reached this point, he suddenly stopped.
“Their bodies exploded and they died!” When Liu Ming heard this, his face underwent a drastic change.
“You don’t need to be worried. Since I have these failed experiments, I naturally managed to pinpoint the reason why they failed. A few years ago, I discovered that a tenacious mental strength was the prerequisite to cultivating this method; otherwise, I would not have imparted this method to you.” The fat old man indifferently responded.
“If this is the case, then there has never been anyone who cultivated the Dark Bone Method and advanced into the Spirit Master realm. Even if my mental strength is slightly stronger, I’m afraid that Martial Uncle Yuan has no way of guaranteeing my advancement into the Spirit Master realm.” Liu Ming’s mouth contained a bitter feeling as he said this.
“You don’t have to worry. The fourth layer of the Dark Bone Method I imparted to you has been altered many times to perfection. Although I am unable to guarantee that everything will happen perfectly. However, even if you fail to advance into the Spirit Master realm with your tenacious mental strength, the backlash should only damage a bit of your Fa Li and Yuan Qi; it shouldn’t be enough to take your life. After all, the reason why the bodies of previous disciples would explode largely lay in the fact that their mental strength was insufficient to control sharp rises in Fa Li when advancing a stage. Moreover, if I am guessing correctly, the purity of your body’s Fa Li is something far from what a normal disciple can compare to. If this truly is the case, then controlling your body’s Fa Li will be even easier. Thus, there shouldn’t be that big of a problem.” The fat old man let out a slight laugh.
“How does Martial Uncle know about the purity of my Fa Li?” A trace of surprise flashed across Liu Ming’s face.
“The Cyan Moon Sword Totem in your hands was something that I came across years ago during a Treasure Inspection Convention. I am very aware of the power it can exhibit when the third restriction layer is expedited. Aside from your body’s Fa Li being more pure than a normal disciple’s, I couldn’t find any explanation for the last strike you used to defeat Gu Jue.” The fat old man nonchalantly said.
“I see! I only have one last question now. Why did Martial Uncle choose tonight to explain everything? If you were to let Martial Nephew just cultivate it in a carefree manner, wouldn’t that be much easier and simpler? Martial Uncle better not cite a worried conscience as your excuse.” After Liu Ming nodded his head, he blinked his eyes and asked a question.
“Finding my conscience? Why would it be because of such a senseless reason? Martial Nephew Bai, do you feel that if I had not imparted the Dark Bone Method to you, you could have cultivated to the peak stage of the Late Spirit Apostle realm without any bottlenecks as a Three Spiritual Pulse disciple? You must know that the majority of regular Three Spiritual Pulse disciples hit a wall when they are a Middle Spirit Apostle, and sometimes even when they are a Beginning Spirit Apostle! Those that genuinely managed to cultivate to the Late Spirit Apostle stage are extremely sparse. Moreover, according to the original text of the Dark Bone Method’s record, as long as one’s Cultivation Method is suitable and one possesses ample preparation, the chances of breaking into the Spirit Master realm are something other methods are far from achieving. The true reason as to why I chose tonight to inform you, was because I wanted to give you the next stages of the Dark Bone Method along with my notes that I have made over the years about the Green Death Language. Afterward, I will be going into true secluded cultivation and not coming out until I either become a Middle Spirit Master or die.” The fat elder sighed and told Liu Ming everything.