Chapter 52: A Difficult Partner to Find, Entering the Officialdom of Shanyang

In the quiet study, Ning Xuan took out the “Divine Eagle Covering the Sky Art” again.

He looked through it carefully.

The more he looked, the more he felt that there was something to it.

This cultivation method had three core secret techniques and two taboos:

The three core secret techniques were:

One, the Divine Eagle Spreads its Wings.

This was a series of techniques that included breathing methods, qi circulation methods, and movements. Its core essence was “when dual cultivating with a woman who cultivates the “Lingyan Small Group Art,” when her qi and blood are like a small swallow circling, one should quickly attack with the momentum of a divine eagle, and rush into her circling like a peck, thus forming a kind of fusion.”

But this kind of dual cultivation required a pair of men and women of similar strength to practice.

If one party was too strong and the other was very weak, then the strong party could only wait for the movement and could not take the initiative to attack, and the effect of dual cultivation would be greatly reduced.

Two, Covering the Sky and Harmonious Cry.

This could only be performed after the qi and blood of both parties had fused. The man who cultivated the “Divine Eagle Covering the Sky Art” had to perform a technique called “Eagle Capturing the Swallow,” while the woman who cultivated the “Lingyan Small Group Art” would correspondingly perform the short and intermittent “Swallow’s Cry” technique.

In this process, the qi and blood of both parties were like boiling water and burning fire. If this process could last for the time it takes to burn two incense sticks, then it would either end here, or enter the next stage, which was the last secret technique.

Three, Above the Nine Heavens.

No one knew how high the sky was, but everyone wanted to ascend to the sky to have a look.

Dual cultivation had reached this point, and it was like a person reaching the clouds. Not only was he extremely tired, but it was also hazy everywhere. At this time, if he could continue, he could climb infinitely.

But which step he could climb to depended on the heart and ability of both parties. The higher he climbed, the greater the harvest afterwards.

The two taboos of the “Divine Eagle Covering the Sky Art” were:

One, if the qi and blood of both parties were not equal, then one must not perform “Covering the Sky and Harmonious Cry,” otherwise the weaker party would definitely perish;

Two, dual cultivation was not lewd. If one had the thought of indulging in pleasure instead of the thought of cultivation, the qi and blood would definitely be chaotic, and the consequences would depend on the degree of progress.

If it was only at the “Divine Eagle Spreads its Wings,” then it was fine.

But if it was at the end of “Covering the Sky and Harmonious Cry” and one suddenly had lewd thoughts and could not restrain them, then the qi and blood would be in great chaos, and the mind would be blocked. In the future, the realm would probably stop here, and it would be impossible to advance half a step.

And if one had lewd thoughts in the “Above the Nine Heavens” stage and could not restrain them, then the consequences would be even more serious. It was even possible that the realm would drop greatly, and one would be crippled, or even die.

Ning Xuan looked at it for a long time.

He understood.

He had a misunderstanding about the dual cultivation method.

He thought that the dual cultivation method was to seek pleasure, but… it was actually the complete opposite.

And this “Divine Eagle Covering the Sky Art,” he had no partner to try it with.

Xiao Jie’s strength was too weak.

The reason why he felt his qi and blood were active before was entirely because Xiao Jie was performing the “Small Swallow Circling.”

He had never strengthened his body from this angle before, so he felt it very deeply.

But if the number of times increased, then this feeling would be minimal.

Ning Xuan thought, and then carefully comprehended this cultivation method. When it was night, he went to find Madam Jie and told her that “the Flying Eagle Tower has been destroyed,” and then took out the “Divine Eagle Covering the Sky Art” and verified it with her.

Sure enough, the “Lingyan Small Group Art” had secret techniques such as “Lingyan Circling,” “Swallow’s Cry,” and “Nine Heavens.”

Afterwards, the two of them began to try.

More than half a month later…

Ning Xuan really felt that the enhancement of his “active qi and blood” had weakened, so weak that the effect was already minimal. And Xiao Jie did not have much harvest either, because Xiao Jie had not even reached the entry threshold for cultivating the “Lingyan Small Group Art.”

Ning Xuan was more and more certain that the dual cultivation method of the Hehuan Sect had a threshold.

This was a method that could only be dual cultivated when one reached at least the late stage of the first grade, or even the early stage of the second grade.

Otherwise, how much power could be generated by the water in a small pond, no matter how much it was shaken?

If there really was a sect like the Hehuan Sect a hundred years ago, then the people in the sect who could cultivate this method must have been experts. It was a pity that the later generations declined and there was no chance to become stronger. This cultivation method slowly became a “fake cultivation method,” and then slowly became a “small technique” for mutual pleasure.

Ning Xuan and Xiao Jie were pleasing each other.

This night, Ning Xuan stepped into the main bedroom again, as usual.

Dual cultivation was not successful, but happiness was still there.

The wind chimes made a crisp ding-ling-ling sound as the door opened.

Why did Xiao Jie like to hang wind chimes in her residence?

Ning Xuan also fully understood.

This was due to the experience of being a “female flying thief” and fleeing for her life.

The sound of the bell could give a warning, so it became a habit over time.

Even after entering the Ning residence, she still knew that the “Flying Eagle Tower” was still there, and she was still worried that “the matter of deceiving Ning Xuan would be settled after the autumn.”

But now, the sound of the wind chimes had become a purely pleasant sound.

Because when the wind chimes rang, the first thing Xiao Jie thought of was not to escape, but to know that General Ning had come.

She put down her pen, and then blew on the fragrance of the new ink on the pages of the desk. Then she happily turned her head to look at the general who had walked in and said, “When the ink is dry, it can be bound.”

Ning Xuan stood behind her, and she leaned back comfortably against his firm lower abdomen and closed her eyes.

Ning Xuan’s gaze passed over her shoulder and swept over the words on the pages. After a little study, he knew that it was the “Lingyan Small Group Art.”

Xiao Jie had written down this single-line cultivation method, one was to repay him, and the other was to hope that he could find a partner who could truly dual cultivate in the future.

Ning Xuan smiled.

The difficulty of finding a partner with the same constitution as him was comparable to ascending to the heavens.

He picked up his little concubine horizontally, held her high with both hands, and then said softly, “The person who invaded the mansion that day and almost abducted you, I have a clue… when they are dead. Then your last bit of insecurity can also disappear.”

Hanzhou, in an elegant restaurant, several scholars were gathered together, surrounding one person like stars surrounding the moon, drinking and talking and laughing.

“Brother Huang is about to enter the officialdom of Shanyang Prefecture. From now on, he will be soaring.”

“Hahaha, you don’t know, right? The day Brother Huang successfully enters the officialdom is also the time when he gets the beauty. That is the third miss of the Great General’s residence…”

“Congratulations, Brother Huang, congratulations, Brother Huang.”

“What’s the use of just congratulating? Why not take advantage of the fact that Brother Huang is still in Hanzhou, hurry up and drink a few more taels of fine wine, and play a few rounds of drinking games. Otherwise, if you want to have a meal with Brother Huang in the future, it will be difficult.”

The scholars toasted one after another.

And the person being toasted was the current Zhuangyuan Lang – Huang Cihe.

But, it was only the current dynasty, not in recent years…

After he passed the imperial examination, he had the qualification to “enter the officialdom.”

Passing the imperial examination was another way to have the qualification to “enter the officialdom” besides being a “confidant of the Son of Heaven” and being “recommended by a local great general.”

Becoming a Zhuangyuan Lang was a sure thing.

Huang Cihe naturally had this qualification.

But, he had defected to Great General Qin.

It was only because the Qin residence had thrown out an olive branch of marriage, and it was agreed that once he took charge of a certain prefecture, the marriage could be completed.

But it was also because he had defected to Great General Qin that his “entry into the officialdom” was limited to Hanzhou and its surroundings.

If there was a vacancy elsewhere, it had nothing to do with him. Only when there was a vacancy in Hanzhou and its surroundings could he be promoted.

And “official positions” were not always waiting for you, so Huang Cihe could only wait.

He had waited for a full five years before, and had finally waited for the Ning family of Wangyue Prefecture, but unfortunately, it had failed.

Now, because the demon invasion had intensified, the demon disaster in Shanyang Prefecture was extremely serious. The two prefects, one on the surface and one in the dark, had both disappeared. A few days ago, their bodies were found and their deaths were confirmed. This Huang Cihe could be considered to have been appointed in a time of crisis and went to take up his post.

Soon, he was going to take up his post.

Many Heavenly Masters and martial artists in the surrounding area had actually noticed him. This Huang Cihe’s identities as “Zhuangyuan” and “Great General’s prospective son-in-law” were extremely “tempting,” and he had a bit of a monarch’s posture.

And after the Manfeng Mountain incident, Huang Cihe could still be held high and let down gently, which made some experts have ideas and come to seek refuge.

Huang Zhuangyuan could also be considered to have swept away his previous decadence and was full of vigor.

But that was before…

Now, he was about to take up his post, and was surrounded and toasted by his former classmates, but he was still full of worries.

Why?

In order to solve the trouble, he had nipped the Ning family in the bud. In order to coax the bullied Qin Yi’er and get the beauty, he had taken the opportunity to send his strongest martial artist with the strongest treasure to the Flying Eagle Tower. But now, the Flying Eagle Tower had been destroyed.

First, he had lost his strongest martial artist, and his heart ached;

Second, he knew that the Ning family was even stronger than he had imagined, and his head ached;

Third, the prefects of Shanyang Prefecture had all been destroyed, so the demon disaster must be serious. He had not yet gone to suppress it, and his great general was gone, and his head ached;

Fourth, that flying knife treasure was given to him by the Great General after he had waited for a long time at the Great General’s seclusion place and had seen the Great General once…

The Great General had not only helped him solve the matter of Manfeng Mountain, but had also given him a treasure, which was a great kindness.

But now, he had not even gone to Shanyang Prefecture, and the flying knife treasure was lost. How could he explain this to the Great General?