Chapter 12 Tonight, it may be a sleepless night

Zhang Ruyi was dressed in white, standing straight with a slight look of surprise as he glanced at Yun'er, nodding gently. "Success! I have broken through to the later stage of the Yellow Realm! Sister Yun'er, why haven't you gone to rest?"

Upon hearing Zhang Ruyi's words, Yun'er was stunned, her heart pounding wildly. She felt an indescribable excitement, almost as if she wanted to cry.

"This is wonderful! Absolutely wonderful!" Yun'er wiped her eyes and said, "I promised to help guard the gate for Prince Jiuzi, so I will not leave."

Feeling touched, Zhang Ruyi took out a Blood Pill and handed it to Yun'er.

"It's snowing. Don't catch a cold. You should take this Blood Pill; it should help keep you warm," Zhang Ruyi said.

Accepting the Blood Pill, Yun'er held it tightly in her hands, nodding deeply as she walked back to her residence, thinking to herself that tonight might be a sleepless night.

After escorting Yun'er back, Zhang Ruyi returned to the center of the snowy courtyard. Standing still amidst the falling snowflakes, he recited, "Calm as a lying elephant, wild as a raging dragon. Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm's second palm, Flying Dragon in the Sky!"

Suddenly, Zhang Ruyi stomped on the ground, causing countless snow to fly up. His arms and legs seemed to transform into rapidly spinning turbines, swirling up countless snowflakes.

With the force from his legs, his body soared more than seven meters high, emitting a low and resonant dragon's roar from his mouth as he struck a thousand-jin boulder ten meters away.

"Boom!"

The boulder immediately shattered into pieces, scattering in all directions and falling into the thick snow.

Zhang Ruyi stood in the snow, gazing at the broken boulder with a sense of joy. "Finally, I have successfully cultivated the second palm of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm. Now, the power of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm is comparable to a middle-grade martial technique."

Not only the second palm, "Flying Dragon in the Sky," but the first palm, "Barbaric Elephant Galloping Earth," also reached the power of a middle-grade martial technique.

If Zhang Ruyi were to cultivate the third palm, then the power of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm would be comparable to a high-grade martial technique.

Each additional palm cultivated would elevate its grade, making it more profound and mysterious.

"The first palm of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, Barbaric Elephant Galloping Earth!"

Zhang Ruyi dashed forward, his body resembling a swiftly running barbaric elephant, striking the air and producing a series of explosive sounds.

Countless snow was sent flying by the palm force, melting into droplets of water in the air.

"Although the first palm, 'Barbaric Elephant Galloping Earth,' is slightly weaker in power compared to the second palm, it has indeed reached the level of a middle-grade martial technique. The Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm is truly profound."

With his current strength, he might not have attained the strength of a true barbaric elephant, but at least that of a barbaric ox!

In martial cultivation, this was known as "the strength of one ox."

It was worth noting that not every late-stage Yellow Realm warrior could unleash "the strength of one ox." Being able to do so already placed Zhang Ruyi at an above-average level among late-stage Yellow Realm warriors.

Having just reached the late-stage Yellow Realm, with the advantage of his six meridians and the power of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Palm, he had boundless potential.

As his cultivation deepened and his physique strengthened in the future, he would certainly be able to unleash even greater power.

After clearing the courtyard of the remaining boulders, Zhang Ruyi returned to his room. Instead of practicing, he lay down on the bed, allowing himself to completely relax and enter into slumber.

After breaking through to the late-stage Yellow Realm, he could finally have a peaceful night's sleep.

He had expected it to take three months to reach this realm. However, with the time power of the Time-Space Spirit Crystal and abundant cultivation resources, he had achieved it in just half a month.

Before the year-end assessment, he was confident in breaking through to a higher realm.

After a night's rest, Zhang Ruyi felt extremely energetic again, filled with strength throughout his body.

"The Qi-Gathering Pills and Body-Refining Powders have already been mostly used up. I need to buy some more at the Martial Market."

Having breakfast with Lin Fei and Yun'er, Zhang Ruyi left the royal palace alone and headed towards the Martial Market.

Arriving at the alchemy market, he entered a shop called "Clear Profound Pavilion."

This shop was located at a crossroad and was among the top three large shops in the alchemy market. Most martial artists passing by would come in to take a look, some to purchase suitable elixirs, and others to sell precious medicinal herbs they had just collected.

An old man with a black mole at the corner of his mouth had somehow appeared behind Zhang Ruyi and asked with a smiling face, "Young master, are you here to buy Qi-Gathering Pills?"

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

Zhang Ruyi was slightly surprised that this old man had silently approached him from behind. If the old man hadn't spoken, Zhang Ruyi would have had difficulty noticing him. He was definitely a martial arts expert!

The old man introduced himself with a smile, "I am Mo Hanlin, the owner of this alchemy shop."

"So, you are the owner. My surname is Zhang," Zhang Ruyi nodded and continued, "I want to buy fifty Qi-Gathering Pills and thirty Body-Refining Powders. I wonder if Clear Profound Pavilion has enough stock?"

Mo Hanlin was slightly taken aback. It was a big order, something only major families would do in one go. For an individual martial artist to buy such a large quantity of elixirs was very rare.

Both Qi-Gathering Pills and Body-Refining Powders were not cheap items, and ordinary martial artists couldn't afford them.

"If Young Master Zhang goes to other shops, it's quite possible that they won't have as much stock. It's fortunate that our Clear Profound Pavilion happens to have a batch of Qi-Gathering Pills and Body-Refining Powders that can definitely meet Young Master Zhang's needs," Mo Hanlin said as he took out an abacus and calculated, "Fifty Qi-Gathering Pills and thirty Body-Refining Powders would cost eighty thousand silver coins at the original price. However, since Young Master Zhang is purchasing such a large quantity at once, there will naturally be a certain discount. How about you pay seventy-two thousand silver coins instead?"

Zhang Ruyi smiled and said, "Mr. Mo, you are indeed straightforward. In the future, I will buy all my elixirs from here."

Zhang Ruyi didn't have much silver left on him, so he went to the money shop in the Martial Market to withdraw two hundred thousand silver coins. After paying seventy-two thousand silver coins, he had a total of one hundred and thirty-five thousand silver coins left.

Completing this big purchase, Mo Hanlin's face was beaming. He said, "Young Master Zhang, do you want to buy anything else?"

"The things I want to buy are definitely not available in your shop, Mr. Mo," Zhang Ruyi replied.

Mo Hanlin asked, "Could it be that Young Master Zhang is looking to buy a suitable weapon?"

Zhang Ruyi held the shopkeeper in even higher regard and said, "Mr. Mo, you have quite an insightful eye."

Mo Hanlin smiled and said, "I've been running this shop for decades and have seen tens of thousands, if not tens of thousands, of martial artists. I have never seen a few people who don't carry weapons with them. How about this? Our Clear Profound Pavilion also has a branch store in the Arms Market. I'll have a young lad take you there."

After a while, Mo Hanlin found a plump teenager of fifteen or sixteen and said to him, "Hanzai, immediately take this esteemed Young Master Zhang to the Arms Market and inform the shop owner that Young Master Zhang is a valued guest of our Clear Profound Pavilion, and should be given an appropriate discount on the price."

The plump teen named Hanzai widened his eyes and vigorously shook his head, saying, "I won't go! I won't go! I don't want to see the shop owner; she can steal a man's soul. Seeing her means being doomed."

Mo Hanlin became exasperated and said in a harsh tone, "You're not even a man. You're at most a half-grown boy. What are you afraid of? Fine! If you don't go, I won't give you any Qi-Gathering Pills this month."

Hanzai panicked and quickly said, "No, no, I'll go, I'll go! I'll definitely go!"

Hanzai walked over to Zhang Ruyi respectfully and said, "Young Master Zhang, please."

Zhang Ruyi nodded and followed Hanzai to the Arms Market.

Zhang Ruyi felt that the shopkeeper of Clear Profound Pavilion was somewhat peculiar, seeming unlike an ordinary person. Of course, he wasn't worried about any ill intentions; after all, the Martial Market was heavily guarded by the military, and the management was extremely strict, so no one dared to cause trouble in the market.

Hanzai whispered, "Young Master Zhang, are you really going to buy a weapon from the shop owner? The shop owner can steal a man's soul! Young Master Zhang, are you a man?"

"Well... I'm just a boy!" Zhang Ruyi replied.

Hanzai breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's great then!"

Hanzai was plump and fair-skinned, with a ponytail on top of his head and ears that stuck out like soybeans.

Zhang Ruyi was curious and asked, "You said the shop owner can steal a man's soul. Is she extremely beautiful?"

Hanzai nodded and said, "The shop owner is indeed extremely beautiful, absolutely captivating, charming, and sensual. One glance from her makes your heart race and your face flush. But what you don't know is that the shop owner has already married seven husbands."

"Married seven husbands?" Zhang Ruyi was surprised.

Hanzai continued, "Yes! All seven husbands died, all on their wedding nights."

Zhang Ruyi asked, "What happened to their properties after they died?"

"Naturally, they all belong to the shop owner! Even our shopkeeper only works for the shop owner," Hanzai whispered. "The shop owner is a real calamity, a soul-stealer, and a fox spirit. Any man who meets her is unlikely to live for more than three days. Fortunately, we are just boys, so we shouldn't have our souls stolen."

Zhang Ruyi nodded and said, "Let's hope so!"

(End of the chapter)