"The middle section of the fifth level?"

Jing Zhe curled his lip and said, "It's nothing special. The head of the garden hasn't practiced martial arts for so many years, and he's only one level lower than them. If the head of the garden had been practicing martial arts all along, he probably would have broken through to the fifth level long ago!"

A silver tongue is meaningless if you don't praise your own woman.

Besides, Jing Zhe naturally felt that his own woman was the most capable—as for Qing Qiu, well, he'd decide whether to praise her or not after seeing her performance later…

Wang Yingqiu smiled slightly after hearing this, then lightly punched him a few times.

"You have such a sharp tongue! If others heard this, they'd laugh at us!"

"Oh? Who's laughing at us? You'll be laughed at for telling the truth?"

Wang Yingqiu rolled her eyes at him and then said, "The higher the martial arts realm, the easier it is to break through. For example, you are already at the first level. If you practice diligently, you might be able to break through to the second level in less than a year! However, from the third level onwards, each advancement becomes increasingly difficult. And above the fourth level, each breakthrough is as difficult as ascending to heaven, and the difficulty of crossing realms is on a completely different level!"

Seeing Jing Zhe in a daze, Wang Yingqiu patted him on the shoulder. "So, you think I'm only one level behind them, but in reality, I'm miles behind! If it were a few years ago, maybe I would still have the confidence to catch up with them, but now, it's just wishful thinking."

"Okay, is it that difficult?"

Jing Zhe suddenly asked curiously, "By the way, my fifth sister is also quite amazing. And according to you, she has no sect or school, and she has achieved what she has today solely by relying on this martial arts manual. What level is she at?"

"Fourth level peak".

"Huh? Only level four?"

Jing Zhe found it strange. He had thought that Liu Jinghong's strength, even if it wasn't as strong as the "Yun Jing Twin Beauties," wouldn't be much different from theirs. He hadn't expected that she was a whole level weaker, which he couldn't understand.

"Actually, your fifth sister's martial arts are different from others. She has been fighting on the battlefield for many years, practicing killing techniques. She has honed her martial arts to a superb level. If it were to actually fight, don't underestimate her just because she is only at the peak of the fourth level. She would probably have a hard time losing to someone at the middle of the fifth level. That's the power of someone who has been through many battles!"

Hearing this, Jing Zhe felt a little better.

"By the way, are there many experts at the peak of the sixth level?"

Wang Yingqiu shook her head: "Very few, you can count them on one hand. They are just the leaders of the four major sects. Our Wuxian Pavilion is weaker than the other two major sects because no one in the pavilion has reached the peak of the sixth level. The highest is my master, who is only at the middle stage of the sixth level. There are no grandmaster-level experts beyond the peak of the sixth level!"

"A Grandmaster-level expert?"

"Yes, after the sixth level of peak, there is the Grandmaster. One person can be worth a thousand troops. It is the realm that many martial arts practitioners pursue throughout their lives! Unfortunately, as far as I know, there are only two reclusive masters in Kunlun Mirror and Qingyun Sect who have reached the Grandmaster level. There are no others."

Grandmaster level!

A being who can single-handedly defeat an entire army!

Although it's a bit of an exaggeration, it's enough to show how powerful this grandmaster is!

After hearing this, Jing Zhe felt a sense of longing.

However, she then became somewhat discouraged: "After hearing what you said, I have even less confidence. How long would it take to go from the first level to the sixth level? Even those exceptionally talented people who start training from a young age have only reached the fourth or fifth level. I'm afraid I could train until I die and still not make it!"

Jing Zhe shook his head, thinking that reaching the Grandmaster level was a pipe dream.

It would be better to improve one's lightness skill and make more simple grenades so that one can throw grenades in fights. Or, to be even bolder, invent a pistol that even a grandmaster would find hard to withstand!

Wang Yingqiu punched him twice in dissatisfaction: "You're a man, and you'll have so many people around you who need your protection in the future. You can't always rely on them to protect you, can you?"

These words made Jing Zhe somewhat embarrassed.

"So you still need to practice more. Besides, you have the jujube pills, so a miracle isn't impossible! I haven't made any progress in so many years, and I even lost a level of cultivation, but because of you... I've gained another level. Isn't that a miracle?"

"Okay, then how about the headmaster teaches me how to practice?"

Jing Zhe is a complete novice; if he were alone, he probably wouldn't even be able to understand the manual.

Wang Yingqiu readily accepted. By the dim light, she memorized the mental techniques of the first level of the martial arts manual and recited them to Jing Zhe, line by line, while also telling him how to do it.

Jing Zhe did as instructed, but with little effect.

He felt he understood, but no matter what he did, he couldn't feel any changes in his body, and he couldn't even feel the fullness he used to have in his body.

So he shook his head: "Master, how about we give up? I don't feel like I'm in good shape, and I won't be able to train much."

Wang Yingqiu sensed his dejection, thought for a moment, then bit her lip and said, "How about... we try dual cultivation?"

"Dual cultivation?"

"Our sect has a special cultivation technique that is passed down only to women, not men. If a woman can become intimate with a male disciple in the sect, she can practice dual cultivation..."

After listening to Wang Yingqiu's explanation, Jing Zhe finally understood.

Although dual cultivation is something women learn, it has limited benefits for women. Its main purpose is to assist men. In dual cultivation, men can absorb yin energy to replenish yang energy, achieving twice the result with half the effort.

Therefore, some male disciples in Wuxian Pavilion would fawn over female disciples for this very reason. The pavilion also had a rule that no one could engage in dual cultivation with anyone other than male disciples in the pavilion. Anyone who violated this rule would have their martial arts skills crippled and be expelled from the sect.

Jing Zhe gasped, "Master, this won't do! If your sect finds out, won't they...?"

Wang Yingqiu smiled brightly and shook her head, saying, "I only want to see you grow stronger and stronger. As for what happens to me in the future, I don't care too much. If I am really discovered, my martial arts are crippled, and I am expelled from the sect, so what? It will save me from all the trouble and I can stay obediently by your side."

At this point, Wang Yingqiu's face showed endless longing, and she didn't seem to be just saying it casually.

Jing Zhe was quite moved by what he heard, but also a little curious: "Master, how did it take to be discovered?"

"Actually, it's not that difficult, but it's not that simple either. The easiest thing to find out is that if you don't know martial arts and don't have any martial arts manuals left by your fifth sister, you'll definitely have to learn martial arts from me if you cultivate with me. If the elders in our pavilion see this, they'll definitely find out at a glance."

But you practice other martial arts. My dual cultivation with you is only to increase your training speed, which is still very difficult to detect!

Jing Zhe was taken aback, then pursed his lips and said, "If a female disciple from the Wuxian Pavilion gets together with a male disciple from another sect, they can engage in dual cultivation without anyone noticing!"

Wang Yingqiu nodded solemnly.

"Yes, that's right."

"..."

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