Free Web NovelChapter 94: Chapter 93: Dragon Elephant Wisdom, Calm Seas and Clear Rivers
Loathing?
Fu Juemin’s brow furrowed slightly. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
’That’s not exactly a good word. Few people would carve it on a piece of jade, let alone wear it.’
After a moment’s thought, Fu Juemin casually tossed the Jade Pendant with the character for "loathing" to Cao Tian, who stood nearby, telling him to take it to the river to wash. Then, he strode forward to greet Li Tong, who was slowly walking toward him.
"Uncle Tong."
Fu Juemin called out, his tone a bit more respectful than usual.
’He’d always known Uncle Tong was skilled, but he’d never imagined he was *this* skilled.’
That "spectacular" transformation from moments ago was still seared into Fu Juemin’s mind like a branding iron. A creature as terrifying as the water monkey had been like a misbehaving child throwing a tantrum in Li Tong’s hands, utterly suppressed from start to finish.
Li Tong had now reverted to his original appearance as a skinny little old man. Draped in clothes that had been torn and shredded by his transformation, he cut a somewhat comical figure, yet no one present could bring themselves to laugh.
Nearly everyone revered him as if he were a deity.
"It still got away?"
Li Tong glanced toward the riverbank, a hint of regret on his expression.
"It doesn’t matter."
Fu Juemin, however, looked calm. "If it dares to show its face again, we’ll take more than just an arm."
Li Tong nodded. Fu Juemin mulled it over for a moment before he couldn’t help but ask, "Uncle Tong, that technique you just used..."
"Does the Young Master wish to learn it?"
SMACK!
Fu Juemin immediately bowed and cupped his fist, his face full of sincerity. "Please, Uncle Tong, teach me."
Even though Li Tong was long accustomed to Fu Juemin’s personality—give him an inch and he’d take a mile—he couldn’t help but find the situation amusing.
"The Young Master is a natural martial arts prodigy. Naturally, I will not hold back anything I can teach..."
"Does that mean you agree, Uncle Tong?"
Fu Juemin’s face lit up with delight, then he adopted a serious expression. "Then I will formally take Uncle Tong as my master!" freewёbnoνel.com
Ever since Fu Juemin began his martial arts training, his relationship with Li Tong had been that of both master and servant, as well as teacher and student. He had always regarded Li Tong as a semi-master, and now that he was about to be taught a new Dharma, he figured he might as well make the relationship official.
Besides, with Li Tong’s overwhelming power, becoming his disciple would mean gaining a reliable and powerful backer for the future.
Unexpectedly, Li Tong shook his head.
"There’s no need for a formal master-disciple ceremony. I have too much trouble following me. An extra layer of connection wouldn’t be good for you or the Fu Family."
Fu Juemin was about to say that he’d even let a grudge-holding water monkey escape, so he wasn’t afraid of a little more trouble, but Li Tong changed the subject. "Shouldn’t the Young Master first ask what this technique is called?"
Fu Juemin paused, then asked tentatively, "Is it a secret art of the Formless Sect?"
Li Tong smiled but said nothing. Then, he slowly pushed a palm out into the empty air.
In that instant, the night wind suddenly gusted, sending Fu Juemin’s sleeves and hair flying wildly.
Amidst a deep, powerful hum that vibrated through the air like the roar of an Elephant and the cry of a Dragon, Li Tong’s voice drifted out.
"This skill, one might say, is fated for you, Young Master. It is fitting that you should be the one to inherit it. Its name is..."
"Dragon Elephant Wisdom!"
...
WHOOOO—
A long, deep blast from the steam whistle drowned out all the noise at the ferry terminal.
As the massive steel hull of the white giant began to slowly pull away from the dock and enter the Min River, the bustling crowd of well-wishers on the pier immediately began waving their handkerchiefs and hats. Some even faced the river with tears streaming down their faces, choked with unspoken emotions.
At that moment, Fu Juemin was standing somewhere on the top deck of this colossal ship, the Haiyan, quietly watching everything below.
Once the matter with the water monkey was concluded, Fu Juemin had wasted no time, leading his men to rendezvous with his father, Fu Guosheng, who had gone on ahead.
The group had arrived at the Min River ferry crossing the day before, thankfully not missing the final boarding time today.
The Haiyan was a massive, eight-thousand-ton passenger liner. In this era, it was considered one of the very best in the country.
It was said that the previous dynasty had gathered the full strength of the Jiangnan Shipyard to build this vessel, even hiring dozens of engineers from the Western World. It took three years to complete.
Another giant ship, the Heqing, was launched at the same time. It was even larger. The names were taken from the saying, "May the rivers run clear and the seas be calm," a wish for peace and prosperity.
This was the first time in his two lifetimes that Fu Juemin had been on such a large cruise ship. He appeared calm on the surface, but inwardly he found it all quite novel.
The Haiyan was divided into four decks, with clear class distinctions determined by one’s ticket.
For instance, the top deck where Fu Juemin was now located was for first-class passengers. It featured not only a high-end restaurant serving both Chinese and Western cuisine but also a cinema, a theater, a swimming pool, a sundeck, and other amenities.
The passengers on this deck were also almost all Westerners. The few Eastern faces one did see belonged to either business tycoons, senior managers of foreign firms, or high-ranking government officials.
The deck below was second class. While the environment couldn’t compare to the top deck, it had all the necessary amenities and was comfortable and elegant. The passengers here were also of considerable status, mostly students returned from studying abroad, or professionals like doctors and lawyers.
The third deck, or third class, was rather spartan. Six to eight people were crammed into a single room, and their range of movement on the ship was limited. This was the choice for most ordinary families.
Of course, compared to the lowest class—the steerage passengers packed like sardines below deck, sleeping in large common berths and never seeing the sun—the third-class deck could be considered a paradise on earth.
Su Hui had prepared four first-class tickets and eight second-class tickets for the Fu Family’s party. Both first and second-class tickets came with the right to bring servants free of charge, so it was easy to get the whole group aboard.
The Haiyan regularly sailed the "Two Guangs to Shenghai" route. Barring any accidents, Fu Juemin’s party would arrive safely in Shenghai in ten days.
Traveling by train overland would have actually been faster, but the wars in the south a few years ago had destroyed many of the railways. Three years after its establishment, the Xin Republic’s Government still hadn’t repaired even half of them.
Taking a train would have meant frequent transfers, which was an incredible hassle, and it certainly wouldn’t have been nearly as comfortable as traveling by ship.
Fu Juemin leaned against the railing, admiring the river scenery for a while until the novelty began to fade. Turning around, he could see well-dressed, blond-haired, blue-eyed Westerners all over the deck, chattering away in what sounded to him like the chirping of birds.
A waiter in a white uniform and bow tie, holding a cigar box, approached and asked in a low voice if he needed anything. Fu Juemin smiled and politely declined, making his way back to his room.
He had specifically requested a separate room from Xu Xinyi, precisely so she wouldn’t disturb his training.
Inside the spacious private suite, Fu Juemin took off his suit jacket and began practicing the techniques from the Pharmacist Master Purifying Light Saber alone.
Then came the Mixed Element Living Stance, the three great killing moves of the Eight Extremes Bone Forging, and occasionally, moves from the Five Elements Tongbei.
Ever since he grasped the resonance between the Black-Scaled Snake Demon Soul Seed and the Five Aggregates Snake Form, Fu Juemin felt that there was more potential to be unearthed in the three great killing moves of Eight Extremes Bone Forging. After pondering it for several days, he already had some ideas.
Before boarding the ship, Li Tong had also passed on the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal to him—one of the four great Iron Body Strange Skills from the previous dynasty, alongside the Pharmacist Buddha’s Glazed Body.
However, reaching the Entry Level of the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal required a special Medicated Bath, brewed with materials like Elephant Hide, Crocodile Blood, and Deer Bone, to aid in cultivation. While things like deer blood and Deer Bone were relatively easy to obtain, the first two ingredients could only be found in the Southern Ocean region.
Fu Juemin would have to wait until he reached Shenghai to see if he could buy them. For now, he was unable to practice it.
Li Tong had told him not to rush. Both the Eight Extremes Bone Forging and the Iron Armor Technique, which he had already practiced to the Entry Level, were already laying the foundation for the Dragon Elephant Wisdom Seal.
The best time to practice this Iron Body Skill Training was after breaking through the Blood Barrier—the Entry Level Refining Method of the Dragon Elephant Wisdom would greatly accelerate his progress toward that barrier.
Fu Juemin practiced in his room for a while, steam rising from his sweaty body. Just as he stopped to rest, he heard a knock on the door.
He opened the door to find a waiter standing there with a food trolley laden with all sorts of dishes. "Sir, your meal has arrived."
Fu Juemin nodded and had the food brought in. The meal had been paid for in advance, but he gave a few extra silver coins as a tip.
The waiter who received the tip became even more respectful and polite. He said his thanks and was about to leave when Fu Juemin’s gaze flickered. He noticed a pile of newspapers on a tray outside the door and called out to stop him.
"Let me see those newspapers."
