Han Li slowly moved away from the Valley of the God’s Hand, and followed the mountain road. After coming out, he habitually looked toward the Crimson Water Peak and started to walk over.
At the moment he didn’t have any major work to do, so he could visit Zhang Tie’s area at the same time everyday. Just thinking about how intense Zhang Tie’s must be made Han Li grimace in pain.
This Way of the Armored Elephant was truly not something most people could bear, because even cultivating the first layer was very painful. Training in the later layers would be even more difficult since one must be willing to suffer grave injuries in order to advance.
“I wonder if Zhang Tie regrets his decision? This Way of the Armored Elephant is truly brutal and far outstrips what a child could possibly endure,” Han Li said to himself while carelessly walking along the road. He began absentmindedly kicking his leg out at the nearby leaves and tree branches that had fallen to the ground.
“I can just wait a few days, then the two of us can go to Doctor Mo and ask him to change the style Zhang Tie will learn to save him from the pain of the Way of the Armored Elephant.” Han Li intended to ensure that his friend would be happy and resolved himself to act.
Han Li looked up and gazed at the trees lining both sides of the road. At this time, the branches on the trees were all bare and without leaves. Walking on the road covered with a layer of dead leaves and branches, Han Li had felt uneasy with the soft feeling underneath his feet.
He was not very far from the mountain peak when he started to hear weapons striking in the distance, and from time to time he would hear a loud wretched scream off in the distance.
Hearing these sounds, Han Li stared off at the mountain peak as his previously good mood began to change for the worse.
This was the Hundred Disciplines Hall’s Senior Disciples training, showing the new disciples how to use weapons and had them conduct fighting drills.
Whenever Han Li saw the other new disciples training in either blade or spear, he would always feel a little interested. He really wanted to handle either the blade or spear. Unfortunately, he would not learn the value of these drills as Doctor Mo had strictly forbid him practice with any weapons. He was also forbidden from training in any other martial art because it would impede his progress with the nameless chant.
So Han Li could only ignore his desire to participate in drills and could only jealously watch from afar. But every once in awhile, in secret, he would borrow a blade from a disciple. He would dance and brandish the blade for a while, and only like this could he curb his desire.
Really! Just what good was the cultivation chant he was using? Even now he could not see what use it could possibly have. Others improved by leaps and bounds through cultivation and martial arts, but he had not progressed from his original state. He just didn’t change at all.
Just after two months of cultivating the Way of the Armored Elephant, Zhang Tie’s body changed, becoming more tough and his strength increased.
But if Doctor Mo decided not to take in Zhang Tie on that day of the entrance examinations, he likely would not have been able to pass the promotion for secret disciples in just two months and would simply have been returned home with some money.
If he can’t learn the other martial arts, then he won’t learn at all!
Han Li both grumbled in dissatisfaction and tried to reassure himself.
Han Li barely paid attention to the road, for he was still apprehensive and his mind was disorganized. He did not have the right state of mind to notice everything before him, so when he was walking he missed some things.
Suddenly, Han Li breathed in a mouthful of air in surprise, and his expression became a quite strange. His mouth stretched out really wide and he squatted down to the ground as he felt a sharp pain. He used both of his hands to grab onto his right toe to relieve it after stubbing it on something. This type of sudden pain had nearly caused Han Li to collapse to the ground. His face turned pale and this painful throb spread from his right toe to the rest of his body.
Apparently under the leaves he had kicked an unusually hard stone.
Han Li inspected his foot closely, and used both hands to grab his ankle. He took off his cloth shoes and blew air onto his foot. In his heart he was slightly worried that this injury was severe as his foot was beginning to swell up, thus drastically impairing his movement.
After a long time, the pain in Han Li’s body was gone. Slowly raising his head, he looked at the ground and swept over it with his eyes. He wanted to find what had injured him so badly.
All around the leaves were the same yellow color. He tried to search around in the tree leaves but was incapable of finding anything in the messy pile of leaves.
Han Li scowled and looked around. He clawed at the ground and grabbed a stick to prop himself up. He slowly and carefully stood up.
After getting up, he used the branch and exerted a lot of strength to uncover and dig around under all of the leaves.
Ah! He found a small fist sized object, and brought it up with his stick.
Han Li carefully looked at the object which had hurt him so badly, a small slender necked bottle that was covered in mud. It looked like it had entirely changed into a gray ash color. He couldn’t see one bit of its original color.
Han Li’s original impression of this bottle was strange, for he thought it was just a small porcelain bottle but it was actually unrealistically heavy.
What kind of metal was this? It was not very large, but if one kicked it, it would cause such a massive amount of pain. This bottle must be something rare.
Han Li was very interested in this little bottle and quickly forgot about the pain in his foot.
Using his hands to roll off the clay, the bottles real color soon emerged. It was an unusual green and beautiful. And on the bottle were some delicate dark green designs of leaves. And the top of this delicate bottle was tightly sealed.
What kind of thing was inside this bottle? Using his hand Han Li grasped the side of the bottle and shook it, but he couldn’t tell what was inside of the bottle just by shaking it.
So he used one hand to grab the top and pinched and twisted it but it wouldn’t move.
Han Li’s interest in this bottle was peaked to new heights. Now he wondered what could he try next to open it, when suddenly a burst of violent pain spread from his foot to the rest of his body.
Oh! How could he forget? Just by touching it with his foot, it had caused him all sorts of pain.
With this kind of injury, it looked like he wouldn’t be able to visit Zhang Tie, and had to first go home instead and apply medicine. And then maybe he would think a bit more about how he chanced upon this little bottle.
So thinking of this, Han Li put the bottle against his chest to prevent other from seeing the suspicious bottle. He then turned around and limped back.