Outside Feihong Palace.
The Chief Eunuch, Lou Qixiang, had been pacing back and forth for a long time.
When he saw Li Chang’an emerge completely unscathed, without anything on him that shouldn’t be there, he let out a heavy sigh of relief.
’As long as nothing happened...’
’As long as nothing happened!’
Li Chang’an shot him an annoyed glance and said, "Protect my mother and the others. And tell her I’m safe!"
Lou Qixiang nodded instinctively. After a moment’s thought, however, he felt something was off and hurriedly asked, "Your Highness... you aren’t going back?"
Li Chang’an took out the Waist Token Emperor Yan had given him, flicking it as he spoke. "I’m going to the Library Pavilion to read. I probably won’t be leaving for a very long time!"
He would have liked to take things easy.
But his current circumstances didn’t allow for any relaxation.
After all, in terms of raw power, he could only be considered a First-class Master in the current world.
Putting aside the Jianghu outside, just among the auras he could faintly sense within the Dayan Imperial Palace, there were plenty of monsters who could crush him with one hand.
Of course, there was another, even bigger reason:
Li Chang’an himself had long been coveting the Martial Arts Techniques and Secret Manuals in the world-renowned Library Pavilion of the Dayan Imperial Palace.
In his past life, under the oppressive rule of the Yaoqing Imperial Court, he had suffered immensely just to obtain a few Cultivation Techniques.
In this life, the world’s largest repository of Martial Dao texts was practically in his own backyard. If Li Chang’an could still hold back, you might as well say he’d successfully kicked a lifelong addiction.
Upon seeing the Token in Li Chang’an’s hand, Lou Qixiang finally understood. He nodded and went back to his duties.
...
...
The two most heavily guarded places in the Dayan Imperial Palace were the Ancestral Temple and the Library Pavilion. Today, Li Chang’an had managed to visit both, achieving a kind of perfect score.
He left the Ancestral Temple in the morning and arrived at the Library Pavilion in the afternoon.
The Library Pavilion was a massive tower over thirty meters tall. As he approached, an Inner Guard came forward to search him. Only after confirming that Li Chang’an was not carrying any fire-starters or weapons was he allowed to get closer.
Upon entering the Library Pavilion,
A rich, scholarly scent mixed with the faint aroma of oil washed over him.
’I’ve hit the jackpot!’ Li Chang’an was incredibly excited.
He looked around and was stunned to find he had seemingly walked into a mountain of books so high he couldn’t see the top. As far as the eye could see, there were neatly arranged collections.
For Li Chang’an, who possessed Heaven-defying Comprehension, this was an inexhaustible treasure trove!
At this thought, the excitement on Li Chang’an’s face was plain to see!
An old man was also sitting at the entrance of the Library Pavilion, puffing out clouds of smoke from something that resembled a long-stemmed pipe.
Seeing Li Chang’an, who was clearly no bigger than a bean sprout, looking utterly awestruck, the old man sneered, set down his pipe, and said, "Kid, who let you in here? Where’s your Waist Token!"
Li Chang’an sensed a formidable aura from this man.
He understood at once.
’Needless to say, this must be another Grandmaster.’
He didn’t try to be clever, simply taking the Waist Token from his waist and handing it over.
The old man seemed somewhat surprised. He took the Waist Token, glanced at it, and grumbled, "So that fellow really gave you a Token. You’ve come to the Library Pavilion, but do you even know how to read? Don’t tell me that fool’s head was turned by some woman’s charms in bed."
Although the old man grumbled for quite a while,
he didn’t give Li Chang’an any more trouble after seeing the Token. He lay back down, took another puff from his pipe, and said, "You can read any book below the sixth floor!"
"Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Don’t damage the books, and put them back where you found them. Otherwise, I don’t care who your father is, I’ll still beat you until you’re crying your eyes out!"
Li Chang’an nodded, bowed to the old man with neither servility nor arrogance, and then turned to walk deeper into the Library Pavilion.
The fact that he remained silent the entire time made the old man study his departing figure for a few extra moments.
He muttered to himself in a tone of surprise and uncertainty, "Huh, is it my imagination? I feel like there’s... something really special about this kid!"
...
For Li Chang’an, entering the Library Pavilion was like a bird taking to the sky or a fish returning to the sea. From this moment on, the gates of heaven were thrown open, and no one could hinder his meteoric rise.
For the next six months, aside from leaving daily to find something to eat, Li Chang’an wished he could spend all twenty-four hours of the day immersed in the Library Pavilion.
The Dayan Dynasty had ruled the world for over 1,300 years.
Although it hadn’t purged all other martial traditions and consolidated them like the Yaoqing of his previous life, the Martial Dao of this world had a much longer history than that of the Celestial Yang Continent.
The number of Martial Artists was also ten or even a hundred times greater.
Aside from eating and sleeping, Li Chang’an worked around the clock.
Even so, after nearly half a year of reading, he still hadn’t finished all the martial arts texts and miscellaneous books on the first floor.
Even though the first floor only housed insignificant Third-class Techniques, which were the most numerous in the entire Library Pavilion, the fact that it took Li Chang’an this long to read them showed just how vast the collection was. It was no exaggeration to call it a boundless ocean of books!
After reading an unknown number of Cultivation Techniques and experiencing countless Eureka Moments,
Li Chang’an closed his eyes, and a revelation finally dawned in his mind.
[With your Heaven-defying Comprehension, after viewing three thousand scrolls of Martial Arts Techniques in the Library Pavilion, you have had an epiphany and comprehended the super First-class Attack Secret Skill, "Ten Directions Annihilation Fist"!]
[With your Heaven-defying Comprehension, after viewing three thousand scrolls of Martial Arts Techniques in the Library Pavilion, you have had an epiphany and comprehended the Grandmaster Attack Secret Skill, "Infinite Heaven and Earth Palm"!]
[With your Heaven-defying Comprehension, after viewing three thousand scrolls of Martial Arts Techniques in the Library Pavilion, you have had an epiphany and comprehended the Grandmaster Attack Secret Skill, "Geng Metal White Tiger Blade Qi"!]
...
Li Chang’an currently had no shortage of Cultivation Techniques to accelerate his training. After all, using the "Star Forging Body Technique" allowed him to resonate with the stars, enabling him to absorb worldly energy at ten or even a hundred times the normal rate.
For his current stage of cultivation, it was more than enough.
Therefore, while reading on the first floor, Li Chang’an spent most of his time focusing on Secret Manuals that recorded attack techniques. The skills he comprehended through his talent were mostly techniques that could kill an enemy in a single blow during combat!
Top-tier Cultivation Techniques could increase his cultivation speed and widen his meridians to store more energy.
The attack techniques he was comprehending now, however, would give him more options in a fight, allowing him to maximize his combat power.
It couldn’t be helped. While most Third-tier Attack Techniques had many flaws, they occasionally had their brilliant moments. The Third-class Techniques, on the other hand, were truly devoid of substance.
Because the Cultivation System was the same, five out of every ten Cultivation Techniques were practically identical, and the other five were so bad they weren’t even worth looking at.
Pure garbage couldn’t even provoke a single thought from Li Chang’an.
Naturally, it couldn’t become fodder for his Heaven-defying Comprehension.
...
After a full year, Li Chang’an finally finished reading all the Third-class Techniques, miscellaneous books, and secret records on the first floor.
Afterward, Li Chang’an sat cross-legged alone in the Library Pavilion for a long time. The aura around his body would sometimes surge forth, and at other times, it would retract until it seemed to vanish completely.
Such a strange scene naturally caught the attention of the old man guarding the Library Pavilion.
In fact, the old man had not stopped observing Li Chang’an since the day he arrived at the Library Pavilion.
At first, the old man just thought Li Chang’an was strange. His every move and action were not like a child’s at all, revealing a maturity that belied his age.
He had even sent someone to investigate Li Chang’an’s background because of this.
His doubts were only somewhat appeased after he discovered that Li Chang’an had been raised since childhood by his mother, along with Palace Maids and eunuchs.
’After all, he’s just a child. Growing up confined in a small courtyard, with only adults for companions—it’s normal for him to be a bit precocious.’
But gradually, he felt that something was more and more off.
’This kid... he really reads the books!’
Whether it was trash or a treasure, he treated them all the same. The only difference was that he spent a little more time on the treasures and went through the trash a bit faster.
But good or bad, he seemed to accept them all without discrimination.
Before he arrived, the books on the first floor of the Library Pavilion were basically untouched. Even though guards came to clean regularly, the books were inevitably covered in a thick layer of dust.
After all, what was this place?
The Royal Library Pavilion of the Dayan Dynasty!
Besides the Royal Family and Relatives, only a very small number of high-ranking officials or favored courtiers who had received the Emperor’s commendation had the chance to come in for a look.
But no matter who they were, they were all important figures of noble status. How could any of them possibly stop for a pile of Third-class Techniques?
But ever since Li Chang’an came, all the dust on the first-floor books had vanished. This meant he had gone through almost every single book on the first floor, to the point that they didn’t even need cleaning anymore.
If Li Chang’an hadn’t looked so serious every time he held a book, the old man would have been tempted to hit him with his pipe.
’What a joke!’
’There are thousands of scrolls on the first floor. How could you possibly read them all?’
...
At this moment, watching Li Chang’an suddenly sit cross-legged on the floor, the old man’s face was filled with shock and doubt. He had just discovered that Li Chang’an was now exuding an aura that made even his own heart pound in alarm!
He closed his eyes and cautiously probed the boy’s aura.
Soon, the old man reached a conclusion that made him question his own sanity, his eyelids twitching uncontrollably—based on the fluctuations of Li Chang’an’s aura, it seemed the boy was... attempting to break through to the Grandmaster Realm?!
’A two-year-old child, trying to reach the Grandmaster Realm... Is this for real?!’