I Am Shocked That You Call This Cultivation

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

The library was only a mile from the neighborhood.

Chen Pingan took less than three minutes to get back to the neighborhood.

By now, it was already 4 pm. The plaza in the neighborhood had gotten very lively. There were children playing, chatting, and exercising in groups.

“That peerless expert might be among them.”

Chen Pingan carefully observed the group of residents. He looked around and felt that the expert was most likely hidden in the group of old men in the neighborhood.

The group of old men were always nestled in the corner of the plaza, their movements very much like street ruffians.

“How profound. Usually, it’s already difficult to squat like that. But when these old men do it, it seems as though they are partaking in some flexibility training!”

If not for the pile of books in his hands, Chen Pingan would have slapped himself. He had been rude to the old men many times in the past. He believed that if they were to hold it against him, he would definitely suffer.

He glanced at the old men in the corner in horror.

None of the old men paid him any attention.

Chen Pingan heaved a sigh of relief. Perhaps it was because the old men were magnanimous and did not want to be petty with him.

He knew that these old men could read the thoughts of others. Earlier, he had thought that…

“The old men won’t blame me, right? But they’re probably angry with me, since they won’t even look at me.”

“It’s over. In the future, I still have questions about cultivation that I need to ask them. Will they still be willing to teach me?”

Chen Pingan revealed a depressed face. He silently walked through the plaza. As he walked, he really hoped that the old men would call out to him.

But no. Not even once.

Crestfallen, Chen Pingan entered the corridor. He felt regretful and mustered his courage to greet the old men, but the moment he turned his head to do so, the courage he had gathered vanished without a trace.

They did not even look over and were busy talking about another child. As they talked, they revealed a smile that Chen Pingan had never seen before. It was filled with gratification and admiration.

Such a smile had never appeared when they were talking to him before.

“Have I disappointed them?”

Sadness was written all over Chen Pingan’s face as he dragged his weak body back to his house.

Not long after he disappeared from the corridor.

“Dali, your grandson’s talent is not bad. He managed to enter the elementary level of the Qi Refinement Stage at the age of five.”

The old men praised generously.

“It’s alright. Out of all the grandchildren, only one of them is capable.”

When Dali heard his good friends praising his grandson, he was so happy that he couldn’t keep his mouth shut.

“Hey, I saw that young man just now. He seemed like he really did take our advice. I saw him carrying a stack of books home.” One of the old men looked at the dark corridor and said with relief.

“That’s a good thing. Speaking of which, it’s all thanks to that hidden expert in our neighborhood. He had given the young man motivation to push forward and not sink any further.”

The other old men also sighed with emotion. This was the young man’s good fortune. He had encountered an expert in the Tribulation Stage and was lucky to turn over a new leaf before it was too late.

“It’s not easy.”

An old man was looking at one of the high buildings in the neighborhood. He lived on the same floor as the young man. Coincidentally, they were neighbors.

But there was almost no contact between them, because the young man who lived next door to him rarely went out during the day. He was extremely solitary.

At first, the old man looked down on the young man. But today, he saw the change in this introverted young man and immediately reminded him of his past.

The old man himself had experienced a period of rebellion that no one knew about. During this period, he did not cultivate and spent his time racing on the road.

Later on, he suddenly came to his senses and started to train when he was almost twenty years old. He had spent sixty-five years to reach the Void Refinement Stage from the elementary level of the Qi Refinement.

Because he entered the elementary level of the Qi Refinement Stage late, he did not have a good foundation. Thus, every step he took was very difficult.

Fortunately, his two sons did not follow in his footsteps and successfully cultivated, marrying and having children.

The old man’s wife died early, and his two sons were also living abroad. They only come back to visit before the new year every year. Other than that, the old man spent his days with his father.

But a while ago, his father had passed away after entering the Mahayana Realm.

The old man was left alone. The only fun he had was to chat with these old men every day on the plaza.

“I’ll make chicken soup tonight to nourish that young man’s body. Young people nowadays are too skinny.” The old man muttered to himself as he walked towards the market.

The young man’s experience was very similar to his. He seemed to be able to see himself in a trance, and started recalling his wild and unrestrained past.

Back when he was cultivating, he had suffered a lot. Perhaps now, he could give the young man some of his own cultivation experience and insights to prevent him from taking too many detours in his cultivation.

…

Chen Pingan kept thinking about what happened just now. Uneasiness filled his heart. He had just gotten to know a group of old men who might be powerful experts, but in the blink of an eye, their relationship had been reduced to such a state.

“Sigh!”

Chen Pingan shook his head and sighed. He wiped the table until it was shiny and placed the books neatly on the clean table.

“I’d better hurry up and comprehend my cultivation. If I improve a lot, the old men might not be angry with me anymore.”

“I can’t let them down.”

Chen Pingan’s expression was solemn as he knelt on the ground and looked at the cultivation books in front of him. He still seemed like a devout believer, despite not putting his palms together and kneeling.

He picked out a book from the pile. Written on the book were the words ” Low Level Compulsory Cultivation Lesson Book”. Chen Pingan realized that this book should be a book meant for elementary high school.

Chen Pingan placed the book beside his nose and sniffed it lightly. Compared to the cultivation technique rewarded by the system, this book had an indescribable fragrance that refreshed the mind.

“The old men are right. Just by smelling its surface, I can already detect such a rich fragrance. This book is probably not that simple.”

Chen Pingan calmed himself down and slowly flipped through the pages. Just as he flipped open the cover, he saw a fantastical picture that showed the surface of a moon and some clouds. In the picture, there stood an immortal with a faint smile.

His first reaction was to think of the phenomenon above Yang City that day. The immortal in this painting must be a Tribulation Stage expert!

Despite not seeing him in person, he could feel an oppressive aura from the person through the thin paper .

Chen Pingan was so frightened that he did not dare to look at the immortal any longer. He hurriedly flipped the page and arrived at the catalog.

It was said that a catalog was the essence of a book. This statement is indeed accurate. Chen Pingan took a glance and felt a headache coming on. A Lot of information flooded in.

The first line of the catalog wrote: Spirit Qi World.

After that, Chen Pingan also saw phrases like “breathing exercise”, “strong physique”, and “high spirits” written in the catalog.

Chen Pingan was deeply moved. The catalog of this book did not have any unfamiliar terms. Instead, it used the simplest words or phrases to allow its meaning to be easily understood.

“The breathing exercise here refers to the process of absorbing Spirit Qi and purging the impurities. This book is truly wonderful. It summarized the entire circulation of Spirit Qi with the simple phrase “breathing exercise”.”

“Strong physique should be about tempering the body. This, too, is a wonderful phrase. Why hadn’t I thought of this before?”

“I am already enlightened after reading the catalog. Many of my questions have even been answered. Impressive indeed. It seems like this book covers the entire cultivation system.”

Chen Pingan was full of praise for this compulsory cultivation book. After reading the entire book, he benefited greatly and his mind became exceptionally clear.

He closed the book and recalled the contents of the book in his mind, forming a sea of knowledge in his mind.

“Now, I’ll start cultivating.”

Chen Pingan had memorized the contents of the book by heart, and he sat down with his legs crossed and was prepared to begin cultivating according to the contents of the book..