For the next few days, Chu He continued checking-in, which resulted in him receiving pills, martial arts, martial arts techniques, and a sword.
His Golden Nine Turns improved drastically thanks to the assistance of the pills while cultivating. Now, he had already achieved the Third level of the First Turn.
To deal with the outside world, he cultivated the third level of Postcelestial Body Forging.
If it had gone public that his rate of cultivation was so quick, it would shatter the confidence of many prodigies out there.
Chu He had accumulated a fair amount of information from the memoirs of uncanny swordsmen in the book depository over the last few days.
This world was rich with martial arts culture and the people were geared toward a culture of intimidation and power.
It was considered peaceful in the city.
However, if one could not become a powerhouse and learn the art of self-protection, it would be difficult to survive as they would be unable to exert any control over their own fates.
As for villages in the mountains beyond the city, those areas were more dangerous as various monsters, clans of other species, as well as outlaws, roamed the lands.
This was the reason why Chu He did not dare leave until he was certain he was powerful enough.
It was safer to stay in the book depository.
Two years passed by just like that.
Chu He checked-in every day for the past two years. He would diligently cultivate martial arts and when he was bored, he would browse through news articles and strange and fantastic stories to learn more about this world he was in.
During this period, youngsters from the Lin family would drop by once in a while for some reading.
This was rather annoying for Chu He.
The reason being that his cultivation was forcefully interrupted every time someone came.
However, there was nothing he could do because this was the book depository of the Lin family, after all. He was nothing but a minor odd-jobber and had no right to chase them off.
As for the old man, he was quite old now and was permitted to live outside of the Lin family. He did not come to the book depository often, and was only there once or twice every month to inspect the situation.
There was only one thing that Chu He was happy about.
The full nine levels of Chu He's Golden Nine Turns' First Turn had been completed. He would achieve the breakthrough to the Second Turn any time now.
He had prepared for this moment half a year in advance.
His continuous check-ins for the last half-year were closely related to the resources he needed for cultivation. He had saved the resources in the System Space as a backup for the breakthrough.
It was a major hurdle to advance from being a Postcelestial to a Precelestial Grandmaster. The stories he had read stated that for this hurdle, the first breakthrough was the easiest to achieve. However, if he failed, the subsequent hurdles would become increasingly difficult. Numerous swordsmen hit a bottleneck at this hurdle, which turned out to last their entire lifetime.
Numerous breakthroughs, numerous failures, and in the end, they died in a depressed state. There were many more who had succumbed to their inner demons or died a sudden death because they were unable to accept the blow of bitter failure. Some suffered a personality change, turning from valiant swordsmen into demonic characters.
That was why Chu He was very careful.
He consolidated the foundation of his being and took things slowly. He allowed his body to endure repeated torments for the sake of one breakthrough without greedily pushing for any other achievements.
Finally, he could not hold back any longer and planned for a breakthrough today.
He took out the treasures and pills he had prepared and obtained from the check-ins for the last half-year and arranged them in front of him. He focused to accumulate his energy as he relaxed his mind and body.
He activated his martial arts skills and aimed for the Second Turn.
He had made thorough preparations in anticipation of the barrier to his breakthrough.
There was a sudden booming sound.
He had achieved the breakthrough.
It was over before he even put in much effort, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
Where was that barrier that obstructed anyone who tried for the breakthrough?
Chu He did not experience the barrier at all.
He looked at all the pills arranged neatly on the floor. He scratched his head, puzzled.
Where was the solid barrier he heard about?
Why did he not feel a thing?
This did not feel any different from the breakthrough he had experienced from the minor realm in the First Turn.
The process had whooshed by just like that.
All his preparation felt like such a waste.
Chu He simply grabbed a handful of pills and shoved them into his mouth, chewing on them like candy.
He felt power expanding within his body.
Chu He was certain that he had achieved the breakthrough.
He now felt that he could take on a hundred of his old selves right now.
The effects of the First Turn and Second Turn felt vastly different. It was like comparing heaven and earth and he could not even find the words to describe how he felt.
…
In the blink of an eye, another two months passed.
Chu He's cultivation of the First Level of the Second Turn had consolidated. He was well on his way to achieving the breakthrough for the Second Level.
It was also quite strange that, for the past two months, the youngsters who had frequented the book depository of the Lin family rarely visited.
Even the old man had only dropped by the book depository three times in the last two months, which made the place feel lonelier than ever.
However, this was a good thing for Chu He.
He was never a fan of a bustling environment.
As things were, he could focus on cultivating without anyone disturbing him.
As for the cleaning work in the book depository, getting that done offered little trouble to someone of his ability.
He practiced the Eight Measured Steps he had obtained from one of the checkpoints. His movements were like a phantom, like a gust of wind. His figure seemed to disperse into numerous scattered shadows as he made a quick stop at every bookcase. Once the shadows vanished, all the dust on the bookcase had been completely cleaned.
As his ability improved, so did his cleaning speed. He no longer required to spend a long time cleaning.
Every morning, he habitually floated about for a short period, finishing his work while practicing his martial arts skill at the same time.
The rest of his time was free and relaxed.
He spent his free time cultivating, reading, and enjoying a leisurely time.
Just like that, another two years passed.
Fewer and fewer Lin family disciples visited the book depository as time passed.
Finally, one day, about half a year ago, the old man told Chu He that his body was failing him and he could no longer visit the book depository to talk to the youngster. He had already made arrangements with the steward to pass all remaining responsibilities to Chu He.
After passing all of his instructions, he left with a fair amount of regret, finally leaving the place he had lived for most of his life behind for good.
He talked to Chu He about how he had suddenly begun to question his life in the few years leading to his departure from the Lin Mansion, whereas most people would embrace the lives they lived when they were in their final years.
He had been assigned to the Lin family's book depository at the age of fourteen.
Now, it seemed he was destined to die a natural death at the age of seventy.
He was the man who lived the longest and the one who led the most leisurely life among his batch that was sent to Lin Mansion.
However, he had lived out his entire life without understanding life nor experiencing it.
He continued yapping at Chu He with remorse. If he had been just a little smarter back then and had gone to the other stations within the Lin Mansion, he might have been lucky enough to cultivate martial arts. Even if he had died prematurely of other causes at the end, he could have departed with the knowledge that he had truly lived.
The old man could feel his life passing by while he poured his heart out to Chu He in one sitting.
In the end, he even advised Chu He to cultivate martial arts if he had the chance, so as to not regret his decisions when he turned old.
The old man eventually left and finally, Chu He was the only person left in the book depository.
He cultivated quietly.
By this point, his cultivation had achieved the Eight Level of the Second Turn.
Chu He could feel that his cultivation speed had slowed down as his cultivation level got higher.
Every level breakthrough would now require a few months.
Despite that, the speed of his progress was still quite extraordinary when compared to others in the world outside.