"Grandpa Lame's leg technique is so fast he can run through the sky—so who was it that cut off his leg? Grandpa Mark's fist is so powerful, but who severed his right arm? And Butcher's saber—who could break through Butcher's blade and cleave him in half?"
Qin Shepherd had witnessed the true skills of Butcher, Grandpa Mark, and Grandpa Lame. He admired them, but couldn't understand: after following Grandpa Lame to learn leg arts, he finally managed to digest the power of the Four Spirit Bloods, and his physique improved. Only, this time, it left him half dead with exhaustion—he wished he could collapse and sleep for days.
Yet, this was only the beginning of his hardships.
Almost every day, the elders in the village would catch a few fierce beasts, refine them into Four Spirit Bloods, and force him to drink them. After that, it was relentless training—pushing him to the brink of collapse before they’d finally let him rest.
Besides Grandpa Lame’s legwork, Grandpa Mark’s fist arts, and Butcher’s saber, he had to learn blacksmithing from Mute, calligraphy and painting from Deaf, and how to hear the wind and find his position from Blindeye—practicing staff techniques against Grandpa Blindeye with his own eyes covered.
When he was so exhausted he could barely move, the Village Chief would call him over to practice breathing and qi circulation. The Village Chief claimed the method he taught was a special cultivation art for the Overlord Body, called the Overlord Three-Core Art—and said it was incredibly powerful.
Qin Shepherd couldn’t tell how amazing this so-called Overlord Three-Core Art really was, but after practicing breathing with the Village Chief, his fatigue vanished quickly. In no time, he was bursting with energy, so he figured this art must be miraculous.
"Village Chief, the art you taught him is just the most basic Guiding Art, isn’t it?" The Apothecary’s eyes flickered; he waited until Qin Shepherd was out of earshot before whispering.
"That’s right. It’s the Guiding Art."
The Village Chief didn’t deny it. He said, "Each of the Four Spirit Bodies has its own cultivation art: the Azure Dragon Spirit Body trains Azure Dragon qi, the White Tiger Spirit Body trains White Tiger qi, the Vermilion Bird Spirit Body trains Vermilion Bird qi, and the Black Tortoise Spirit Body trains Black Tortoise qi. But Shepherd doesn’t have any of these elemental qi in his body, so he can’t cultivate the Four Spirit Body arts. He can’t train with any of our arts. That’s why I can only teach him the simplest method—the Guiding Art, which even ordinary people can practice. Guiding Art has no attribute at all."
The Apothecary frowned. "But the Guiding Art is just too simple and common. At best, practicing it makes you a martial artist—there’s not much achievement in that."
The Village Chief’s expression grew strange. "That’s what I thought too, but now I realize we might have underestimated the lowest-level Guiding Art. Shepherd has been cultivating it with me since he was a child, and now his qi is incredibly strong—just attribute-less, so he can’t unleash its power."
The Apothecary’s eyes flickered. "How strong?"
"If his qi had your Azure Dragon attribute, at this point his strength would already be half as much as your own Spirit Embryo Treasury."
The Apothecary was startled, blurting out, "I’ve already broken through the Heaven-and-Man Wall and opened the Heaven-and-Man Treasury! Over the years, I’ve pushed my Spirit Embryo Treasury, Five Luminaries, Six Directions, and other treasuries to their limits! Half the power of my Spirit Embryo Treasury is already peak martial artist level! He hasn’t even opened his Spirit Embryo Treasury and he’s reached the martial peak—if he does open it, wouldn’t his cultivation be several times greater than the Four Spirit Bodies who’ve done the same? And this is just the Guiding Art?"
The Village Chief was just as baffled. "This Guiding Art that’s everywhere really is mysterious. It’s simple, but its foundation is unbelievably solid—more than I ever imagined. Shepherd has actually been practicing it for eight years now. Eight years is no short time. Progress was slow at first, but lately I’ve noticed his cultivation advancing faster and faster—especially after taking the Four Spirit Bloods these past days. His progress is frightening! If Guiding Art weren’t so common, I’d almost think it was some incredible divine art..."
Both men wore odd expressions.
The Apothecary let out a long breath and shook his head. "No matter how deep his cultivation is, attribute-less qi can’t unleash any real power. How far do you think he can take the Guiding Art?"
The Village Chief’s expression grew even stranger. "I have no idea."
The Apothecary nodded, understanding what he meant.
The Guiding Art is the lowest, most basic cultivation method. It’s usually used to lay a foundation for children—by the time they’re in their teens, their bones are set and they can withstand the impact of Spirit Blood. Once their Spirit Body is identified, there’s no need to practice the Guiding Art anymore.
After breaking through the Heaven-and-Man Wall, there are far better arts—there’s no reason to put effort into the Guiding Art.
And even if ordinary people keep practicing the Guiding Art, they could never consume Spirit Blood every day like Qin Shepherd does.
Only the great clans have the resources for this, but they’d never waste so much on a disciple with ordinary talent. No clan would do what the villagers of Oldridge do—capturing Four Spirit Beasts over and over just to pour all that power into someone like Qin Shepherd.
The Village Chief had never heard of anyone cultivating the Guiding Art to its limit; in fact, he’d never seen anyone reach even Qin Shepherd’s current level.
So, as for how far Qin Shepherd could take his training—he simply didn’t know.
What truly shocked the Village Chief and the Apothecary was that, as Qin Shepherd kept training, his cultivation grew deeper and deeper. This lowest-level Guiding Art, on him, revealed something extraordinary—his foundation became unbelievably solid!
A month later, he could withstand several times more Four Spirit Bloods than before, and his qi was so deep it seemed as if he’d already opened his Spirit Embryo Treasury—maybe even stronger than that!
Only, his qi—though deep—had no attribute, so he couldn’t unleash any real power, and his cultivation remained hidden.
But there was an upside: his resistance to blows was incredible, and his recovery was lightning-fast. After sparring with Butcher’s saber, he’d immediately move on to Grandpa Mark’s fists, then cover his eyes to duel Grandpa Blindeye with staffs, then train legwork with Grandpa Lame, then heft a hundred-pound hammer at Mute Smith’s forge. This brutal schedule—he only needed a short session of breathing with the so-called Overlord Three-Core Art, and he’d bounce back, good as new!
The effects of the Overlord Three-Core Art startled even the Village Chief, prompting the Apothecary to quietly check Qin Shepherd’s body—just in case all that excitement left some hidden damage.
(Irrelevant system message skipped.)
After checking, the Apothecary wore a strange look. "It’s not excitement, and there’s no hidden damage—it’s just that his qi is really that strong. It’s already starting to enhance his physical constitution."
The Village Chief was baffled too. For all his years of experience, he’d never seen anything like this—someone cultivating the most ordinary Guiding Art to such a level. Qin Shepherd’s progress had already surpassed what anyone thought possible for the Guiding Art.
"Qin Shepherd, today you’ll learn tailoring with Granny Sue—no fist training."
Granny Sue called out to Qin Shepherd. The hunchbacked old woman carried a small basket filled with needles and thread, tottering quickly outside. Qin Shepherd hurried to catch up, taking the basket from her. He asked, puzzled, "Granny, isn’t tailoring something we should do in the village? Why are we heading out?"
"Today, we’re learning to make real clothes—outside the village."
Granny Sue chuckled. "These days, Old Mark, Grandpa Lame, and the others have taught you plenty of real skills. Granny can’t be stingy—today, I’ll teach you a tailor’s true specialty."
A tailor’s true specialty? Isn’t it just making clothes?
Qin Shepherd was confused, but he followed Granny Sue out of the village, heading downstream along the river. Though she was hunchbacked, Granny Sue walked astonishingly fast—Qin had to use all the legwork Grandpa Lame taught him just to keep up. They traveled more than ten miles, reaching the foot of the hills, where a herd of deer grazed and played in the woods, about two hundred steps ahead.
Granny Sue plucked an embroidery needle from the knot of thread in her basket, flicked it with her finger, and the silver flash vanished instantly. Qin Shepherd saw a deer two hundred steps away tumble to the ground with a thud, while the rest of the herd scattered in fright.
Granny Sue tiptoed forward, with Qin Shepherd following. The deer lay on the ground, still alive, but pinned motionless by Granny Sue’s silver needle through its brow.
"Shepherd, watch closely. This needle locks its Heavenly Soul."
Granny Sue had Qin Shepherd memorize the position of the silver needle at the brow, then took another embroidery needle and pierced the deer’s tailbone. "This needle locks its Earthly Soul."
She took another embroidery needle and pierced the deer’s navel. "This locks its Life Soul. With the three souls pinned, there are still seven spirits. The first is called Corpse Dog, which resides at the crown of the head—the Heavenly Spirit."
She took another silver needle and pierced the deer’s navel again. "The second spirit is called Hidden Arrow, which resides at the brow chakra. Be careful—Hidden Arrow is easily confused with the Heavenly Soul. These two needles are in the same spot, but one is deep and one is shallow. Don’t mix them up."
"The third spirit, Sparrow Shade, is at the throat. Feel your own throat—see if there’s a triangular notch? That’s where Sparrow Shade hides. This needle pins the Sparrow Shade."
"The fourth spirit, Swallow Thief, is at the heart—where the vital energies gather, right here."
"The fifth spirit, Not-Poison, is at the navel. Careful—not to confuse it with the Life Soul."
"The sixth spirit, Purge Filth, is at the perineum—the place for expelling waste."
"The seventh spirit, Stinky Lung, is in the lungs—the place for breathing in and out."
After pinning the deer’s three souls and seven spirits, Granny Sue said, "This is the most crucial step before making clothes: locking the souls—locking the three souls and seven spirits. Shepherd, did you get all that? If you did, we’ll start making the clothes."
Qin Shepherd didn’t understand what this had to do with making clothes, but he carefully memorized every position. "Got it," he said.
Granny Sue took out a pair of scissors, snipped open the deer’s lips, and soon peeled off the entire hide. Strangely, even with the skin removed, not a single drop of blood flowed.
"Just now, I locked its souls—its blood, essence, spirit, and soul are all sealed in this hide. The deer is dead, but the skin is still alive. But to truly refine it into clothes, you need special techniques. Watch closely, Shepherd, and memorize where my fingers strike!"
Granny Sue tossed the deer hide into the air. As it fell, the hunchbacked old woman moved with surprising speed, using her fingers as needles to tap rapidly across the hide.
Qin Shepherd watched intently as Granny Sue struck three hundred and sixteen points before the hide even hit the ground—each tap at a different spot, each channeling qi into the skin.
When the hide landed, it actually looked like a living deer—shaking its head, wagging its tail. You’d never guess it was just a skin!
Qin Shepherd was stunned. Granny Sue suddenly chuckled, unfolded the hide, and swept it around Qin, wrapping him up. "This is the kind of clothing a tailor should make," she laughed.
Qin Shepherd felt the hide tightening, as if it were fusing with his body, binding him so tightly his hands dropped to the ground.
He actually felt himself turning into a deer—even sensing a stubby tail growing behind him!
Granny Sue took a bright mirror from her basket and held it up. Qin Shepherd saw his reflection—he’d really become a deer!
He tried to speak, but only deer cries came out—bleating and yelping.
"Heavenly Demon Creation Art! What a spell! Who would’ve thought that in the desolate wilds of the Great Ruins, I’d run into demonic remnants and demon spawn teaching such harmful arts!"