2 Chapter 2: Wisdom Time (Request to Add to Reading List)

Although Shen Zhui was alert to Yang Wu's threat, he didn't take it seriously.

Currently, Heyuan City can roughly be divided into two factions of forces.

One is the County Honorable controlling a county, commanding three divisions, six departments, as well as the assistance of the city temple. There are thousands of servants under his command, hundreds of post-natal martial artists, and three innate martial artists.

The other is the clans and houses of nobles, with the Li and Yang families as the main players. These families are rich and possess strong martial forces, including over a dozen innate martial artists. Combined with the good fortunes supported by the ancestral halls of the clans and the officials who serve in Heyuan County, their influence is immeasurable.

The County Honorable either aligns with the wealthy clans or is suppressed, often struggling to enforce policies outside the county city.

However, things have changed since the arrival of the new County Honorable three years ago. For two years, he remained low-key, and kept under the radar.

But in the third year, he rose suddenly!

Internally, he radically restructured the administration and personnel, rigorously clamped down on corruption within the county office, and hired the competent, strengthening martial forces.

Externally, he sought to win over and suppress the smaller clans that were attached to the Li and Yang families, causing these smaller clans to lean toward the County Honorable and repeatedly dealing blows to the Li and Yang families.

Now, the influence of the County Honorable even surpasses that of the Li and Yang families! He has truly become the highest authority in Heyuan County!

Innate martial artists have a lifespan of two hundred years. The County Honorable has only been in office for three years and is considered a newcomer. Yet he already achieved such results.

It's only a matter of time before he cleans up the Li and Yang families.

This Yang Wu is a veteran who has been working in the county office's martial affairs department for seven or eight years.

But he failed to see the changes in the situation. Relying on his connection with the Li family, he continues his hypocritical ways, colluding for personal gain and using various excuses to extort the common citizens and merchants.

He tried to win over Shen Zhui several times, but would Shen Zhui follow him to his death?

That's why Shen Zhui said that Yang Wu was clinging to the wrong leg and would one day be dealt with.

"However, regardless of the situation, one's own strength is the most important. If I were to breakthrough to become an innate martial artist, even the County Honorable would have to yield three points to me. I'll become the object of flattery for all the major clans and be treated like a respected guest."

Shen Zhui thought silently. The world here is different from his previous one; survival of the fittest and a strict hierarchy are the norms.

Even within the city, hailed as the place blessed by divine power, struggles for power are constant.

Not to mention outside the city, hosting demons and ghosts, and martial artists are mediocre, while crises lurk everywhere.

"The system can exchange Enlightenment Time, allowing me to enter an enlightened state."

"However, it takes one hundred Good Deeds to exchange for one second. With my 3100 Good Deeds, I can only exchange for 31 seconds."

"I wonder if 31 seconds is enough to advance my footwork technique to the Great Achievement Realm," Shen Zhui wondered as he picked up the Iron Ruler Ninefold and made his way to a bamboo grove behind the county office.

This bamboo grove concealed a training ground.

As soon as he entered the training ground, several of his colleagues from the three divisions and six departments greeted him.

"Shen Zhui, you're here?"

"Wow, Shen Zhui, you're really hardworking."

"Shen Zhui, are you here to challenge the Plum Blossom Formation again?"

One of them, a middle-aged man dressed in black training clothes who saw Shen Zhui approaching, smiled and greeted him.

"Shen Zhui, have you completed your task?"

"Yes, Brother Hu, I just finished." Shen Zhui nodded with a smile.

This man was named Zhao Hu, and like Shen Zhui, he belonged to the Martial Department of Heyuan County. He was a ninth-rank post-natal martial artist!

With this ability, he ranked within the top five among the experts in the martial ranks. If only his footwork wasn't so poor, he could have ranked even higher.

Zhao Hu laughed heartily: "Good job."

He genuinely thought highly of Shen Zhui.

Innate martial artists are rare in Heyuan County, with a population of over a million, only dozens exist.

Generally, they are the ones who exist like respected guests in the various major clans and noble families. They hardly make a move and are rarely seen.

Even under the command of the County Honorable, there are only two or three innate martial artists.

Most commonly seen are post-natal martial artists.

Though Shen Zhui is a seventh-rank post-natal martial artist, his combat power is enough to kill an eighth rank!

Even more remarkable is that he is only seventeen! His future is unlimited!

Of course, Zhao Hu didn't know that Shen Zhui had only been practicing martial arts for three years. If he knew, he would have been even more amazed!

"Thanks to Brother Hu's usual care." Shen Zhui replied respectfully.

"Enough with the formalities. The Plum Blossom Formation is free, go ahead. When you're done, I have something to talk to you about."

"You need to talk to me?" Shen Zhui was a bit curious, but he didn't ask any further questions.

"Thanks, Brother Hu. I'll go in now."

...

Training ground, in front of the Plum Blossom Formation.

Shen Zhui closed his eyes and took a deep breath, slowing his heartbeat.

"Exchange all Good Deeds for Enlightenment Time!"

"Exchange successful. 31 seconds of Enlightenment Time begin! Countdown: 30, 29, 28..."

The moment the countdown began in his mind, Shen Zhui's eyes snapped open, and he leaped onto the first stake in the Plum Blossom Formation!

The stake was only as thick as an arm. The landing surface was minimal, barely large enough for one foot.

And once the Plum Blossom Formation starts running, the stakes turn into 'live stakes'.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak~" "Crack, crack, crack~"

The mechanism beneath the floor started to operate subtly, and the stakes on the ground shook forward and backward, rose and fell, swayed left and right...

The moment Shen Zhui stepped on the first stake, it suddenly sank!

The moment a practitioner steps into the Plum Blossom Formation, they need to make a quick decision, analyze and determine their next step.

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh~"

Like a light and robust Panshan goat, Shen Zhui leaped swiftly, making his way forward on the moving stakes.

At this moment, he was completely focused on his footwork technique, the Flowing Cloud Step!

"To clearly recognize the action is Enlightenment! In Enlightenment Time, I can quickly find my shortcomings and correct them promptly!"

At this moment, Shen Zhui felt his thinking was clearer than ever before!

Before, he was only awake. Now, in 'Enlightenment Time', things were different!

He continuously improved his Flowing Cloud Step, and in the blink of an eye, Shen Zhui has crossed a distance of a hundred feet.

"Crack, crack, crack~"

The stakes rotated rapidly. As he continued to advance, the distance between the stakes became longer, and their positions changed more frequently...

However, it was as if Shen Zhui had eyes all over his body, and each step landed accurately on a stake.

Sometimes, it even looked as if when Shen Zhui stepped out, the stake was still far away, but by the time his body arrived, the stake had moved as if by magic right under Shen Zhui's foot.

"The Plum Blossom Formation is a marvelous arrangement for testing and training one's physique. It extends for a full kilometer!"

"If you can traverse a hundred meters in this array, your physical abilities can be considered as having achieved the minor accomplishment stage!"

"If you surpass three hundred meters, your physical abilities would have reached the major accomplishment stage!"

"If you can complete the full kilometer of the Plum Blossom Formation, it is possible for your physical abilities to reach the perfect realm!"

"Even a warrior at the innate realm may not necessarily pass through this formation completely. It remains to be seen just how far Shen Zhui can go."

Quite a few people were watching the situation at the training ground, all of them discussing enthusiastically.

Among the more than a hundred postnatal martial artists in the county yamen, Shen Zhui was already somewhat well-known.

Firstly, it was because of his young age.

Secondly, his combat power was worthy of note, a seventh rank postnatal warrior capable of defeating an eighth rank postnatal warrior, and his enthusiasm for cases and arresting criminals was unmatched. The criminals he apprehended alone were equivalent in number to those caught by some who had been at it for seven or eight years.

Thus, there were quite a few who were paying attention to him.

Shen Zhui was concentrating on his physical technique, immersing himself in comprehending it.

"That's not right, I was applying force wrongly with this right foot before!"

"For this leap, seven-tenths of my strength should be enough. I used to use my full strength, which was wrong!"

"So that's how it is, while the Flowing Cloud Step depends on the movement of both feet, the upper part of the body can also affect the balance point..."

"Previously, this part… was wrong!"

"That was an error!"

"A bit faster!"

"..."

...

Time flew rapidly. Shen Zhui was immersed in constantly correcting and adjusting his physique. He easily covered the distance of a hundred meters.

This feeling was extremely unique. All the previous discomfort while training his physique felt crystal clear at this moment. With each step he took, it felt instinctive to correct the previous mistakes.

Seeing action with insight is enlightenment!

In this state, martial artists can clearly perceive the shortcomings in their own actions and are incredibly focused! It is a pinnacle state that a martial artist can attain but not seek!

Joyful!

Comfortable!

However, when he reached a distance of more than 270 meters, the speed of the wooden stakes in the Plum Blossom Formation had reached an extremely fast rate.

"Squeak, squeak! Crack! Crack! Squeak~"

The wooden stakes were moving frantically, all making sharp sounds from friction!

"Warning, countdown remaining: eight, seven, six, ..."

"Three, two, one, enlightenment time has come to an end."

At the moment when the countdown ended—

"Hmm?!"

Shen Zhui was abruptly jolted out of the state of enlightenment, and then the very next second—

His foot found nothing but air!

"Bang!"

His body lost its balance, and he suddenly fell from mid-air to the ground.

With his fall to the ground, the entire Plum Blossom Formation came to a halt, all the wooden stakes standing still.

"Damn, Shen Zhui! You've improved since the last time! You're close to the realm of major accomplishment in physical abilities! Not bad at all!" Zhao Hu ran over, looking surprised at where Shen Zhui had fallen to.

Shen Zhui rose from the ground and looked at the marker not far away.

"Two hundred and eighty-two meters! Just a bit away from major accomplishment in physical abilities!"

Shen Zhui nodded in satisfaction.

Physical abilities and martial techniques are divided into introductory, minor accomplishment, major accomplishment, and perfect realms!

To raise the Flowing Cloud Step to the realm of major accomplishment is incredibly difficult

Reaching this point is a rare feat even within the entire County Yamen.

"It's a pity that 'Enlightenment Time' is still too short. Its effect is not as strong as that of 'opening enlightenment'. If those 31 seconds were 'Opening Enlightenment', it would be wonderful."

The Punishing Evil System's good deeds exchange for realization time also has several levels!

Enlightenment Time, seeing action with insight, one second exchanged for 100 good deeds!

An even higher level...

Opening Enlightenment Time, expounding all principles, one second exchanged for 1000 good deeds!

The effect of this is drastically different!

"Previously, I just had to break through twenty seconds of Opening Enlightenment Time to pierce the veil of the major accomplishment realm in the Iron Ruler Ninefold."

"Unfortunately, the exchange cost for this 'Opening Enlightenment' time is too high."

Twenty seconds consumed 20000 good deeds, which it took Shen Zhui half a year to accumulate.

Moreover, that was with good luck. He was once involved in a homicide case of an Innate Realm warrior along with Captain Wang Long from the Martial Ranking Room.

"Innate warriors have certain immunities. Once it reaches the point of deploying armed forces for apprehension, they are undoubtedly guilty of a serious crime. Such a person would garner more good deeds."

"That time, Captain Wang Long held the 'beheading' order given by the yamen's superior. More than twenty people rounded up and directly killed that extremely evil innate warrior."

"According to the requirements of the Punishing Evil System for beheading, there would be at least tens of thousands of good deeds!"

"Although I'm not the one who killed him, I merely participated in the clamp-down operation and assisted from the sidelines. After the event, the system judged and awarded me 3000 good deeds!"

......

While Shen Zhui was in a daze, Zhao Hu came and punched him, laughing and swearing,

"You brat, such a large improvement, yet you look so dismissive, you're really trying to make me angry."

Zhao Hu, who had been cultivating for ten years, was still far away from reaching the major accomplishment realm in physical abilities. Yet Shen Zhui, who was still so young, had already surpassed him, and he still looked unsatisfied!

"Brother Hu, you flatter me." Shen Zhui replied grinningly as he emerged from the side of the Plum Blossom Formation.

"That's right, Brother Hu, you said earlier that you needed me for something?" He asked as they walked and chatted on the pavilion road.

"Haha, I wanted to tell you originally, I was afraid it would affect your training..."

"Shen Zhui, congratulations. The yamen's top official and the captain have decided to elevate your wage and allowance to the ninth rank!"

"You should invite me for a drink, this is the equivalent of a ninth rank postnatal warrior's treatment!"

"Ninth rank?" Shen Zhui was a little stunned by the sudden surprise.

"Let's go, let's go see the yamen's top official and Captain Wang."