"You bastard! You killed Ah Niu! I'll make you wish you were dead!"
Du Yuncheng roared, absolutely livid.
That Battle Beast of his possessed a trace of the Ancient Barbaric Bull's bloodline. He had poured countless efforts into raising it!
"Once you step into the Beast Fighting Arena, you have to follow the rules. Life and death are part of the game."
Luo Tian shook his head, repeating the exact words Du Yuncheng had said earlier.
Previously, when that man in common clothes was begging for his life, Du Yuncheng had shown him no sympathy at all.
"You..."
Du Yuncheng was so angry his fat jiggled, his eyes blazing with murderous intent.
If not for the rules of the Black Market, he would have charged forward and torn that brat to shreds.
"Hmph!"
Du Yuncheng suppressed his rage, flicked his sleeves, and turned to leave.
He had lost immense face today. His fearsome Battle Beast, which he had been showing off, was killed by a mere cultivator at the First Layer of Meridian Opening.
The onlookers sighed with emotion. The combat beast match had been thrilling and completely unexpected.
Some even began to speculate about Luo Tian's identity.
"Young Master Du, have you forgotten something?"
Luo Tian asked with a smile, his mind on the Upper Grade Martial Skill Du Yuncheng owed him.
Du Yuncheng's expression turned sinister. This was the Black Market; even the Patriarch of the Du Family would have to abide by the rules here.
"Hmph, it's just a mere Mortal Level Upper Grade Martial Skill. This Young Master has plenty of them!"
In truth, Upper Grade Martial Skills were incredibly valuable, a significant asset even for the Du Family. If Du Yuncheng's father found out about this, he would definitely get a furious scolding.
Du Yuncheng had only made such a bold promise because he was certain his Battle Beast wouldn't lose.
"Here!"
Du Yuncheng glared at Luo Tian with venomous eyes for a long moment before pulling a booklet from his robes, tossing it over, and storming away.
SWISH!
Luo Tian leaped up and caught the secret manual.
"Star Condensing Sword Point?"
Luo Tian flipped through it carefully, checking the Martial Technique's Tier.
But the people around them were already murmuring when they heard the name Star Condensing Sword Point.
"It's actually the Star Condensing Sword Point! That Du Yuncheng is a real piece of work."
"It's an incomplete martial skill that's fairly well-known. Because it's incomplete, it's extremely difficult and risky to cultivate. Many Martial Artists who tried to learn it in the past ended up either dead or crippled!"
"Heh, even though the Star Condensing Sword Point is technically a Mortal Level Upper Grade Martial Skill, it's worth a few thousand taels of gold at most. That kid got screwed!"
...
Luo Tian overheard the surrounding discussion.
"That Du Yuncheng is truly treacherous and shameless!"
Luo Tian cursed under his breath.
He had been surprised himself that Du Yuncheng had been so generous as to bet an Upper Grade Martial Skill.
Luo Tian had just glanced at it. The Star Condensing Sword Point only had the first three layers, and even those were incomplete. The rest was just a few scattered words and phrases.
If one were to cultivate it rashly, the consequences would be dire.
In terms of value, this martial skill was worse than a Mortal Level Middle Grade Martial Skill.
"Hmph! Du Yuncheng! Did you think a mere incomplete martial skill could harm me?"
A cold smirk played on Luo Tian's lips.
'The Creation Celestial Book can perform inference on all things in the world. A mere incomplete martial skill won't be a problem for it.'
WHOOSH!
Luo Tian's figure flashed as he quickly left the Black Market. In a crowded area, he took off his black robe and mask, seizing the opportunity to slip away.
"Where did he go?"
"He's gone! Did that kid notice us?"
Behind him, a few figures who had been tailing him looked completely baffled.
With his heightened senses and Spiritual Sense, Luo Tian had long since noticed he was being followed.
Most likely, some of the trackers were Du Yuncheng's men.
...
「Back at home.」
"Xiaotian, where have you been these past few days?"
Ning Xueyao's delicate brows furrowed, her beautiful eyes filled with worry.
Come to think of it, Luo Tian hadn't been back for three days.
"Xueyao, I've been out cultivating these past few days. I successfully completed my Meridian Opening and have become a Martial Artist!"
Luo Tian said confidently.
"You broke through to the Meridian Opening Realm?"
Ning Xueyao's jade-like lips parted slightly, her face a picture of surprise.
To prove it, Luo Tian conjured a layer of pale blue True Qi in his palm.
'As I recall, Xueyao also practices martial arts. She must be familiar with the basics.'
"That's wonderful! Xiaotian, you've completed your Meridian Opening and become a Martial Artist."
A smile like a budding green lotus bloomed on Ning Xueyao's stunning face. She was so beautiful it was breathtaking, leaving Luo Tian momentarily dazed.
"I'll go make a delicious meal to celebrate."
Her eyes shimmering like clear water, Ning Xueyao, elegant and ethereal, gracefully departed.
Back in his room.
Luo Tian's consciousness reached out to the Celestial Book in his mind.
WHOOSH!
As expected, a cloud of black mist appeared.
"Boy, have you forgotten our agreement? You've already succeeded in your Meridian Opening! Hurry up and free me from the Celestial Book!"
the Celestial Book God immediately spoke.
Luo Tian ignored the black mist and asked the Celestial Book directly, "I have a Mortal Level Upper Grade Martial Skill here. Can you perform an inference to complete it?"
"The Star Condensing Sword Point's original Tier was close to 'Spirit Level.' Once perfected, it can reach the Spirit Level Tier. Insufficient Celestial Book Power. Unable to perform inference."
A line of text appeared on the Celestial Book.
"Close to Spirit Level?"
Luo Tian was completely taken aback.
'The original Tier of the *Star Condensing Sword Point* was that high?'
'And after being perfected by the Celestial Book, it can even reach Spirit Level Low Grade!'
A Spirit Level Martial Skill, in great families like the Du and Liu Families, would be considered a clan-guardian ultimate technique.
Perhaps the Spirit Level Martial Skill's rank was too high, far exceeding Luo Tian's current level, which was why the Celestial Book needed more power for the inference.
"What if you only perform an inference on the first three layers?"
The content of the first three layers was relatively complete and fell within the scope of the Meridian Opening Realm, so it wasn't a leap in tiers.
'Once my cultivation improves in the future, I can have it infer the rest.'
"Possible!"
A single word appeared on the Celestial Book.
"Excellent!"
A look of joy spread across Luo Tian's face as he quickly had the Celestial Book begin the inference.
HUMMM!
Dense text and diagrams quickly materialized on the Celestial Book—the perfected first three layers of the Star Condensing Sword Point.
At the same time,
the gray-green glow on the book's pages dimmed rapidly, soon fading completely.
Information about the martial skill flooded into Luo Tian's mind.
"This perfected Star Condensing Sword Point not only has its risks cut in half, but its power is also greatly increased."
Luo Tian was ecstatic after reviewing the martial skill's contents.
The Star Condensing Sword Point: use the finger as a sword, condensing True Qi into a single finger for powerful single-target attacks.
Upon cultivating to the Second-Layer, the penetration power of the Sword Pointing would be comparable to an ordinary Treasure Artifact!
Treasure Artifacts were a tier above ordinary Mortal Soldiers, usually forged from rare Spiritual Ores.
For the Sword Pointing's penetration power to rival a Treasure Artifact at just the Second-Layer was truly formidable.
As for the Third-Layer.
Its power was even more terrifying. One could condense "Breaking Sky Sword Qi" and kill from a distance, unseen!
"Boy, you dare to ignore this god!"
The Celestial Book God was furious with Luo Tian's attitude.
"A mere First Layer of Meridian Opening cultivator dares to be so rude to this god! Do you have any idea, back when this god reigned supreme over the Ten Thousand Realms..."
Following that, the Celestial Book God launched into a long-winded boast.
'This is the first time I've realized this Celestial Book God is such a chatterbox.'
"What exactly are you?"
Luo Tian asked.
"The Celestial Book God!"
"..."
Luo Tian's consciousness began to withdraw.
"Boy, wait!"
"I am the Ancient First Divine Beast! Due to an accident..."
"..."
Luo Tian's consciousness departed.
"Don't go! I'm really not lying this time..."
...
"The Ancient First Divine Beast?"
Luo Tian felt that sounded slightly more plausible than "Celestial Book God," but he didn't fully believe it either.
Next,
filled with anticipation, he began to cultivate the perfected Star Condensing Sword Point. This was a Spirit Level Martial Skill!
Even a Young Master like Du Yuncheng would find it difficult to learn a "Clan Guardian" Spirit Level Martial Skill unless his talent and cultivation were exceptionally high.