In the courtyard of the Li Family, Li Shen had finished his exercise. He looked at his hands with furrowed eyebrows.
"I have corrected my posture and performed the movements exactly as shown in Ape's Might Body Forging Technique. Even so, why am I still unable to break through into the Path Forging Realm?"
Li Fan, his elder brother, handed him a towel to wipe his sweaty body. He consoled him, "Don't worry. It is a High-Grade Cultivation Manual. Naturally, its difficulty will be higher. You will be able to breakthrough in due time."
"But I am the second son of the Li Family Patriarch! I receive the best resources available in the family. And yet, I haven't broken through after training for two months?"
Li Shen vented his frustration to his big brother. He had heard numerous taunts from the elders as well as their descendants. Some Elders had even demanded the technique for their descendants, claiming it was wasted on him.
He looked with pitiful eyes toward his brother.
"Didn't you always say I am a genius? Someone born to cultivate? Could it be that you are wrong? Could it be that I am really a useless fool as those Elders say?"
Li Fan caressed Li Shen's hair gently.
"Do not even think of such thoughts! You are a genius. One technique does not change that. If this technique doesn't work, we will find another one. But never doubt yourself."
Then he got up and offered Li Shen a hand.
"C'mon! Right now you are in no state to cultivate. Let's take a stroll around our estate. Maybe that will refresh your mood."
The two brothers set off.
While strolling through their enormous grounds, they arrived near the servant's quarters. They noticed a figure practicing martial arts in the front yard.
"Shen'er isn't that posture the thirteenth diagram in your Ape's Might Body Forging Technique?"
Li Fan asked Li Shen, pointing to the figure before them.
Li Shen was dumbfounded at this discovery. He hurriedly checked his pockets to confirm the presence of his Martial Arts Scroll. He absently replied still captivated by the figure.
"Yes, it is."
The man changed his posture again. Li Shen's eyes widened because he recognized the movement. His voice sounded a pitch higher as he exclaimed, "That! That was the 14th move in the Ape's might body forging technique!"
Li Fan grimly nodded. He looked at the servant that was following them.
"Li Wu, You know what to do."
The figure in the front yard was none other than Li Chun performing his daily exercises. Suddenly he heard a bellow directed at him.
"Li Chun, how dare you steal the Second Young Master's cultivation technique?"
Li Chun paused in his exercise mid-way. He turned to scold the servant accusing him.
"What nonsense are you spout…?"
His words died on his lips when he saw the two figures behind the servant.
"First Young master! Second Young Master! This humble Li Chun greets you."
Li Fan sneered at his greetings.
"Still not confessing? Li Wu, break his legs!"
Li Wu immediately raised his stick to act on his master's order. Li Chun's face turned pale. Without wasting time, he dropped to his knees and grabbed the Second Young Master's robe.
"Shaoye, I have been your loyal servant for a decade now. Please believe me. I have not stolen your Cultivation Technique. I haven't even seen you practice it! So how can I possibly steal it?"
Li Shen stopped Li Wu from striking. Li Chun was his assigned servant after all, and he knew his habits and tendencies. He was not the type to steal.
"Li Chun, tell me the truth. Where did you learn your Cultivation Technique?"
Li Chun turned to Li Fan.
"Young Master, do you remember you sent me to buy some books from the Outer City a few months ago?"
"Li Chun, do you want to die?"
Li Fan exploded with rage. He strangled Li Chun to shut him up while nervously eying his younger brother.
Li Chun looked at his Second Young Master pleadingly as he struggled to free himself. His face was slowly turning blue, and his veins were showing.
"Brother, let him go. At least let him finish what he has to say! Maybe he found his Cultivation Technique in that Bookstore?"
Li Fan calmed down. He released Li Chun with a threat.
"One wrong word and…"
Li Chun rubbed his neck and looked at Li Shen with gratitude.
"Young Master is wise and merciful."
"Stop flattering. Speak, where did you find your Cultivation Technique?"
Li Fan interrupted. Li Chun threw him a fearful glance and recounted how he got his Cultivation method.
"When I was returning from the store, I found a book with a shiny cover thrown in the alley. I opened it with curiosity, and shortly after, I was in Path Forging Realm! There was even a set of movements to follow for practicing further in my head."
Li Shen and Li Fan exchanged knowing glances.
"And what was the name of this book?"
"Second Young Master, you know I can't read words."
Li Chun smiled helplessly.
"Then describe how that book looked." Li Fan commanded from the side.
"The Book's cover was all black. The title was golden-colored..."
"Enough! Come with us to the Patriarch."
Li Fan did not wait for Li Chun's answer. Instead, he dragged Li Shen and hurried to the Main branch's courtyard.
—
"So you are saying the Cultivation Technique that we bought for 1700 gold and the one selling for 100 gold out there is the same?"
Li Family's Patriarch, Li Lei roared in fury. His rage was directed toward the prodigal son, Li Fan.
He had given up on a precious artifact that would've helped him build ties with Monstrous Flame Sect to purchase this manual.
The gold spent was not that big of a deal. It was a large amount, but it could be earned back. But the reputation of the Li family would be in the gutters if word of this incident got out.
"What would other families think when they learn we are treasuring and using the same technique that any dog on the street can buy? How can we maintain our status as one of the three great powers of Sal City?"
Li Lei paced with agitation while Li Fan and Li Shen kept their heads down.
"Father, we should go to Lotus Pavilion and demand an explanation. It is they who duped us. It is only natural that they take the blame."
Li Lei stopped and took a good look at his eldest son. He had spoken the words he wanted to hear. Instead of praising him, he turned and walked to the door. He commanded as he opened the door.
" Bring the Scroll and Li Chun. We are going to get our due."
Soon, the quartet of Li Lei, Li Fan, Li Shen, and Li Chun was in the Lotus Pavilion. The manager of Lotus Pavilion, Lian Hua, personally came out to greet them.
"Patriarch Li, First Young Master, Second Young Master! What an honor! How can I serve you today?"
"Manager Lian, we are here to seek an explanation! We suspect you have auctioned and sold a duplicate manual to us!"
Li Fan hissed. His voice was not loud enough for everyone to hear, but it had indeed attracted everyone's attention.
Lian Hua paled at the accusation. Upon furtively glancing at her surroundings, she saw eyes watching them. She immediately led the group to one of the most luxurious VIP rooms. An attendant was sent to call for Master Jin Ping as soon as they sat down.
"Young Master Li, what are you saying? We never sell duplicate items. Our products are all verified and certified by reputed appraisers like Master Jin Ping."
"Then how do you explain this?"
Li Fan explained the entire incident that happened with Li Chun. They even asked him to give them a demonstration.
Throughout this conversation Patriarch Li was silent, treating Lian Hua as air. Speaking in terms of status, Patriarch Li and Manager Lian Hua were near equals. Yet he did not even greet her.
He also let Li Fan handle everything while he stayed a silent spectator. His actions let Manager Lian Hua realize how grave this incident was. If not handled carefully, this might cause a permanent rift to form between Li Family and Lotus Pavilion.
"Is it not possible that Li Chun picked up another book that coincidentally looks the same as Ikasa's manuals?"
Li Fan gave her a deadpan stare. Even Lian Hua did not believe the words that came out of her mouth. The room devolved into awkward silence.
This silence was broken with the entry of Master Jin Ping. Manager Lian Hua got up and thrust the Scroll holder and the Certificate of Authenticity before Master Jin Ping.
"Is this the same manual mentioned in this Certificate, Master Jin?"
The old man failed to read the situation and took his time cleaning his hands before slowly opening the scroll holder. As he unfurled the scroll, the title that had left a deep impression on him came into view.
"Ape's Might Body Forging Manual! Yes, this is the technique mentioned in the certificate."
Lian Hua panicked. She hoped Master Jin Ping would deny that the technique on the scroll and technique on the certificate were the same.
"Are they really the same? How can you decide just from the title? Check if the depictions are correct?"
Master Jin noticed Manager's abnormal behavior. So, he proceeded to take a closer look at the energy path intended and the exercises for it.
He sighed with admiration.
"No matter how many times I look at it, I can't help but admire this fabulous method for cultivating."
He carefully rolled the scroll and put it back in the holder.
"Yes, that is the Cultivation manual I certified."
When he noticed his words met with silence instead of the usual flattery, he noticed something amiss. Even the manager looked at him like he had just spelled her death sentence.
'Old Man, since you can't read the situation, you better be my scapegoat!'
Lian Hua decided to push the entire blame on the appraiser. And rightly so, as it was his job to verify the goods.
"Master Jin, can you please tell our guests the origin of this Manual?"
However dumb he might be, Master Jin Ping perceived that the dispute was about the manual he had authenticated. He still remembered the Adventurer's words about the origin of the manual.
Nonetheless, uttering those same words here would mean exposing the dubious origins of the manual.
'I should just fabricate a story of its origin. Anyways no one will be able to ascertain the veracity of my claims.'
"Ahem… This manual comes from the ruins near Mahogany City. According to data gathered, these ruins belong to the Holy Wood dynasty's branch family, the Lin family. They used to name their techniques after the beast they were inspired by."
Everything he said about the ruins and the Lin Family was true. Except this technique did not originate there.
'But no one will know?' Master Jin Ping laughed internally while maintaining the charade of a wise old man.
Even Li Fan couldn't find any way to refute his words. At this moment, Li Lei thundered. He slammed his palm on table and voiced his frustration.
"If this manual is authentic, then why are similar manuals being sold to those lowborn for a paltry sum? Who leaked the manual?"