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Chapter 108: Chapter 108: What Does It Have to Do with You!
Holding the token for claiming the secret manual, Luo Cheng went straight to the counter for registration.
"Oh, Mist Shadow Step!"
Behind the counter was a female elder. When she saw Luo Cheng wanted to study Mist Shadow Step, she furrowed her brows slightly and said:
"Are you aware of Mist Shadow Step’s training requirements?"
Luo Cheng knew what she was trying to say and nodded. "Yes, I’d like to give it a try."
The female elder shook her head slightly but didn’t say anything more.
She’d seen too many disciples aiming too high; advising them was pointless.
After registering the information, the elder handed a copy of the manual to Luo Cheng. "Thirty Essence Energy Pills."
Luo Cheng nodded and directly took out thirty Essence Energy Pills.
A five-star body movement martial arts manual was worth at least several million taels, even tens of millions; thirty Essence Energy Pills were nothing at all.
Of course, that’s only for someone like Luo Cheng.
For an ordinary Outer Disciple, their monthly allowance was only fifty Essence Energy Pills. After accounting for cultivation costs, little remained. Spending thirty Essence Energy Pills was a significant expense.
Handing the manual to Luo Cheng, the female elder warned again:
"This copy of Mist Shadow Step will self-destruct in seven days. Copies cannot be taken out of the sect and must not be passed on privately. Otherwise, losing your cultivation is the least of your worries; it could cost your life!"
"Don’t worry, Elder, I wouldn’t gamble with my life."
Luo Cheng stashed the manual and was about to leave when the female elder seemed to remember something and added:
"Today happens to be Elder Yan Feng’s session on Mist Shadow Step. Elder Yan Feng has mastered Mist Shadow Step to the Perfection Realm. If you’re interested, you can attend his lecture at Song Yuan Valley. However, his lessons are quite expensive, costing twenty Essence Energy Pills per session."
Hearing this, Luo Cheng’s eyes lit up.
Five-star martial arts weren’t ordinary techniques. They couldn’t simply be mastered by mere practice. Having guidance from predecessors would undoubtedly yield twice the results with half the effort.
Luo Cheng didn’t lack Essence Energy Pills now, but he did lack strength!
"Thank you, Elder!"
After expressing his thanks, Luo Cheng turned and left the Martial Storage Hall.
As soon as Luo Cheng left, several Outer Elders immediately gathered around.
Because of Luo Cheng, Yun Mengli had killed four Outer Elders, impacting the interests of many other elders!
Quite a few Outer Elders were watching Luo Cheng, waiting to see him and Yun Mengli make fools of themselves!
"Elder Shui, which manual did Luo Cheng choose?"
An elder clad in a gray robe, Elder Yan, asked the female elder behind the counter.
There was nothing to hide about this, so Elder Shui said, "Mist Shadow Step."
"Mist Shadow Step!"
At those words, the attending elders froze momentarily, their faces showing astonishment.
Elder Yan sneered dismissively and let out a chilling laugh: "Trash will always be trash. He doesn’t keep his feet on the ground but dreams of reaching the heavens in a single step! A mere Fifth Layer of the Transcendence Realm dares to train in Mist Shadow Step! It’s as absurd as trying to swallow an elephant in one bite. Such a fool—how Yun Mengli takes a liking to him is beyond me!"
The other elders remained silent but clearly agreed with his words.
The intent of Mist Shadow Step was profound, and its true power rivaled six-star body techniques. Yet it had been downgraded to a five-star technique only because it was too difficult to master—very few managed to grasp its essence.
Not to mention a martial artist at the Fifth Layer of the Transcendence Realm; even many Outer Sect geniuses at the Third Stage of the Tongxuan Realm had abandoned it due to its difficulty.
A five-star technique not cultivated to a high level might not even be as effective as a four-star technique!
Luo Cheng didn’t hear their discussions, nor would he care even if he had.
He was entirely focused on one thing right now: improving his strength.
"Mist Shadow Step at the Perfection Realm—definitely worth checking out!"
After making some inquiries, Luo Cheng headed directly to Song Yuan Valley.
Song Yuan Valley was located in the Outer Sect’s core area within the Xuanyuan Sect. It was a vast, ring-shaped valley with numerous lecture halls built within.
Every day, Outer Elders would teach martial arts techniques and clarify doubts in Song Yuan Valley. Fees were charged according to the grade of the technique being taught.
A short while later, Luo Cheng arrived at the valley’s entrance.
At the left side of the entrance stood a large announcement board, displaying the martial arts techniques to be taught that day, as well as the lecture locations and other details.
A dozen elders sat behind stone tables beneath the announcement board, responsible for registration and directing disciples. A large group of Outer Disciples gathered around them.
Luo Cheng quickly spotted Mist Shadow Step on the board. The lecture by Elder Yan Feng was priced at twenty Essence Energy Pills.
"Elder, I’d like to learn Mist Shadow Step."
Luo Cheng approached a stone table and handed over twenty Essence Energy Pills.
"Southeast, Lecture Hall Thirty-Seven!"
The elder seated at the stone table didn’t even look up as he took out a Jade Token.
Luo Cheng accepted the token and made his way into Song Yuan Valley.
Inside the valley, the space was vast, spanning dozens of miles, filled with lecture halls and bustling with people.
Following the directions, Luo Cheng soon found Lecture Hall Thirty-Seven.
The hall was located at the edge of a bamboo grove. At the very front stood a raised platform, with many jade mats arranged in front, already occupied by twenty or thirty people.
Taking a quick glance, Luo Cheng’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Among the twenty or thirty individuals, their auras were all strong. The weakest among them were martial artists at the Sixth Layer of the Transcendence Realm, while the majority were at the Third Stage of the Tongxuan Realm!
Several individuals emitted essence energy so dense it resembled flowing water—likely experts of the Third Stage of the Tongxuan Realm!
"Oh, it’s you!"
Suddenly, a voice exclaimed. A figure stood from within the group.
Luo Cheng glanced over, furrowing his brows slightly.
It was the tall youth who had accompanied Princess Hua earlier!
He hadn’t expected to run into him here—apparently, the youth had also chosen to study Mist Shadow Step!
Gao Ming looked just as surprised but soon grinned maliciously at Luo Cheng:
"What are you doing here? Don’t tell me you, a piece of trash, want to train in Mist Shadow Step as well?"
"Why not!"
Remaining calm, Luo Cheng placed his Jade Token on the jade plate at the front of the hall and walked inside.
Hmm?
This action immediately drew quite a bit of attention.
When the others saw that Luo Cheng was only at the Fifth Layer of the Transcendence Realm, they were even more astonished.
No martial artist at the Fifth Layer of the Transcendence Realm had ever dared to attempt Mist Shadow Step!
To them, this was outright wasting time, unless the individual was an extraordinary martial arts prodigy!
"Who is this person? He’s only at the Fifth Layer of the Transcendence Realm, yet he dares to choose Mist Shadow Step."
"Could he be one of the newly recruited geniuses? Recently, a few nine-star Martial Soul prodigies joined the Outer Sect. One of them, Ling Chulan, is not even fifteen and has already achieved a Middle-level Sword Heart. A once-in-a-million Sword Dao prodigy with exceptional insight!"
As Luo Cheng stepped into the lecture hall, the crowd murmured, speculating on his identity.
Even Gao Ming froze for a moment before bursting into laughter:
"Luo Cheng, you piece of trash, you actually dared to come in? Do you even know what grade of martial arts Mist Shadow Step belongs to? With your aptitude, you won’t even touch its threshold in your entire life!"
"Don’t waste your Essence Energy Pills—get out of here! You’d be better off going back to being a servant disciple. That’s where you belong!"
These words instantly enlightened the crowd about who Luo Cheng was.
"So he’s that Luo Cheng! A piece of trash who dares to dream of training in Mist Shadow Step? How laughable."
"He might’ve won first place in the Green Cloud Trial, but he actually thinks he’s a genius now. Such arrogance... no wonder he’s crossed paths with Senior Brother Jin Min and others."
The crowd buzzed with discussion, their tones filled with disdain.
Outer Disciples had always looked down on servant disciples.
Even when a servant disciple managed to ascend to Outer Disciple status, this disdain remained!
Especially for someone with a Wasted Martial Soul.
In their eyes, Luo Cheng wasn’t even qualified to train alongside them!
Silently fuming, Luo Cheng locked his gaze on Gao Ming, smiling coldly:
"My legs are my own. Whether I train or where I go is none of your concern. You’re so arrogant—tell me, how far have you gotten with Mist Shadow Step? Reached Perfection? Or perhaps even the Transformation Realm?"
