Qi and Blood Like a Tiger

Only the medicinal powder within a radius of roughly twenty centimeters around his palms would have its medicinal potency absorbed. If his entire body were submerged, the effective range was even smaller; only the medicinal powder within three centimeters of his skin would have its potency drawn in by the mysterious energy. If he were to use food as an energy source, it would have to contain extremely concentrated energy, just like medicinal herbs. Otherwise, it could never satisfy his need to absorb energy rapidly. Lin Zheyu took a deep breath, casting aside all stray thoughts. He poured the medicinal powder into the wooden tub, added water, and stirred it thoroughly with his hands. *Use two units of Origin Power to advance the Golden Goose Skill.* The thought rippled outward. Lin Zheyu's mind grew dazed, entering that peculiar mental state. His consciousness descended into the mysterious conscious space, embarking on relentless, endless training. The progress of the Golden Goose Skill advanced rapidly, soon reaching the perfection of the Seventh Layer before stepping into the Eighth Layer, and it continued to climb swiftly. From the initial stage of the Seventh Layer to the Eighth Layer, advancing the Golden Goose Skill had consumed roughly eleven units of Origin Power in total. This was equivalent to him cultivating relentlessly in the conscious space for about eleven years without relying on any nourishing medicinal herbs. Over such an extensive period of time, the Ten Thousand Armies Steps was gradually integrated into the Golden Goose Skill by Lin Zheyu. Lin Zheyu's innate talent was already exceptionally outstanding; even without using Origin Power to advance, his aptitude had astonished Liang Song. With such formidable talent, through ten years of frantic cultivation, the Ten Thousand Armies Steps had steadily merged into the Golden Goose Skill. Lin Zheyu's lightness skill became increasingly ethereal and ghostlike. Vaguely, it carried an elusive quality akin to Duan Yu performing the Lingbo Microsteps in his past life, shifting and dodging without any discernible pattern. At the same time. Lin Zheyu's body was also undergoing an earth-shattering transformation. The Qi and Blood Three Transformations was a major hurdle, also known as Qi and Blood Like a Tiger. As his qi and blood were continuously purified and elevated, they abruptly underwent a qualitative leap upon reaching a certain limit. The qi and blood throughout Lin Zheyu's entire body suddenly twisted into a single strand, seemingly endowed with a life of its own. As blood circulated through his body, it emitted a faint, tiger-like roar. After a few breaths. Lin Zheyu opened his eyes from the daze, exhaling a long plume of turbid breath. This time, he did not feel that surging sensation of power that usually followed a breakthrough. The qi and blood in his body were exceedingly thin, less than ten percent of what he possessed at his peak. "Qi and Blood Like a Tiger... So this is Qi and Blood Like a Tiger. The qi and blood power is far more condensed than before; the loose qi and blood have twisted into a single strand." Lin Zheyu examined the condition of his body. Once twisted into a single strand, the qi and blood gained an added touch of agility, making them far easier and smoother to control. Moreover, the qi and blood flowed much faster. Closing his eyes, he could faintly hear a rumbling roar produced by the rapid circulation of his blood. Lin Zheyu took a sudden stride forward and threw a Wild Bull Fist. Qi and blood power poured into the strike, and terrifying force erupted from his muscles. *Bang!* A dull crash rang out. His fist blasted an indentation roughly two centimeters deep into the wooden training post. "So strong!" Lin Zheyu looked at the fist mark on the wooden training post, finding it somewhat unbelievable. This post was made of iron birch, which was as hard as iron. He had never expected to blast such a deep fist mark into it with his bare hands. Previously, he could only leave a shallow mark less than three millimeters deep. He had not imagined that when his qi and blood underwent another metamorphosis and twisted into a single strand to reach the realm of Qi and Blood Like a Tiger, the improvement would be this dramatic. "No wonder Senior Brother Han said back then that only upon reaching the Qi and Blood Three Transformations could one match a living corpse." "Even though living corpses are said to possess copper skin and iron bones, once one reaches the Qi and Blood Three Transformations, one can blast deep fist marks even into iron-hard birch. Dealing with a living corpse should be well within reach," Lin Zheyu mused to himself. He recalled the living corpse in Beast Roar Mountain. Unfortunately, the living corpse had vanished without a trace; otherwise, he truly would have liked to test his skills against it. Ever since Ren Jie had lured the living corpse into Lion Valley last time, little news had been heard of it. Lin Zheyu did not know whether it had been dealt with by the Nine Nether Cult's priest or had fled into the deep mountains. [Heaven Rewards Diligence] Name: Lin Zheyu Origin Power: 0 Skills: Wild Bull Fist (Perfection) Six Harmonies Saber (Great Accomplishment 10%) Golden Goose Skill (Eighth Layer 8%) Ten Thousand Armies Steps (Fifth Layer 34%) Poison King Body (First Layer 0%) Turtle Breathing Art (Third Layer 4%) Lin Zheyu looked at the figures in his consciousness; the Golden Goose Skill had already reached the Eighth Layer. Just as he had anticipated, after entering the Eighth Layer, one unit of Origin Power advanced his progress by eight percent. To reach the perfection of the Eighth Layer and step into the realm of the Qi and Blood Four Transformations, he would need about thirteen units of Origin Power in total. With the integration of the Golden Goose Skill and the Ten Thousand Armies Steps, the Ten Thousand Armies Steps had passively risen to the Fifth Layer, not far from reaching perfection. However, the further along it went, the harder it became to improve. Under his frantic training, the integration between the Ten Thousand Armies Steps and the Golden Goose Skill had reached roughly eighty percent. Past that point, the conflicts between the two grew increasingly pronounced. To continue integrating and advancing them would require more time for study and bitter practice. Lin Zheyu estimated that by the time the Golden Goose Skill reached the perfection of the Eighth Layer, he should be able to bring the degree of integration up to around ninety-five percent. The remaining five percent consisted of parts that could not be merged due to severe conflicts. "Fusing just two arts is already this difficult. One can only imagine how hard it must be to create a powerful martial art from scratch," Lin Zheyu could not help sighing. Without Origin Power, an ordinary person seeking to fuse two arts would need at least ten to twenty years of bitter training. Yet how many decades did a person have in a lifetime? Normal martial artists would only expend thought on this when their strength had reached an absolute ceiling and could advance no further. *** Walking along the streets of Songyi City, Lin Zheyu found far fewer pedestrians than before. Arriving at Bidan Teahouse, he did not see Jia Yanyong or the others and had no idea where they had gone. He ordered a few side dishes and a flagon of General's Tears. Influenced by Master Liang, Lin Zheyu had also developed a fondness for this wine. General's Tears possessed a rich aroma and a mellow flavor, but its lingering punch was exceptionally fierce, providing a peculiar thrill. About half an hour later, Jia Yanyong and the others walked in from outside, beaming with elated expressions. Lin Zheyu had never seen them this happy even when frequenting Hundred Pavilions. "What's got you all so thrilled?" Lin Zheyu asked curiously. "Haha! Something happened to the Xing clan—it's truly gratifying!" "Last night, an expert broke into the Xing estate and killed a Qi and Blood Realm expert of the Xing clan. Xing Zhicheng and his son are both dead, and Xing Penghai's corpse was only found on the city outskirts this afternoon!" Xie Jiang said with a laugh. "You should have seen the scene—it was truly a spectacle!" "As they dug, they unearthed quite a few corpses. Among them were actually the bodies of Xing Zhiyuan and Xing Jing'an! The Xing clan members' faces turned utterly black!" "Haha, it nearly killed me laughing!" Jia Yanyong roared with laughter. Lately, the men of the Wuding Gang had been constantly stirring up trouble and acting arrogant. Seeing the Xing clan suffer misfortune made them happier than a trip to Hundred Pavilions. *They found the bodies so quickly?* Lin Zheyu was somewhat surprised. He had merely found a secluded spot at random to bury them; he had not expected them to be located so soon. "Did they find the culprit?" Lin Zheyu asked curiously, wanting to know how the Xing clan was reacting to the matter. "How could they possibly find them?" "That Xing Zhicheng was a Qi and Blood Realm expert. Anyone capable of breaking in and killing him had to be a Qi and Blood Realm expert as well." "Who knows, maybe someone from our Feihong Gang or the Nine Stars Gang did it. If they had found them, a brawl would have broken out long ago!" Xie Jiang said with a grin. "Then how are they reacting now? Are they continuing the investigation?" Lin Zheyu asked. "The government authorities and the City Guard have both been dispatched, but it's just for show. Without any clues, how could they possibly catch anyone?" Xie Jiang shook his head. Lin Zheyu sat to the side, listening to them recount the events, feeling completely relieved. *** In the blink of an eye, two days passed. Friction frequently erupted among the three major gangs, and Jia Yanyong had even sustained some injuries, though they were only minor. For two days straight, Lin Zheyu did not step outside. With Zhenbin acting as his deputy to oversee Feihong Gang affairs, there were very few situations requiring Lin Zheyu's personal presence. Aside from practicing martial arts and studying the Poison Canon every day, he ate voraciously. As his physique strengthened, his digestive capacity improved accordingly. Eating multiple large meals every day allowed his qi and blood power to recover at an incredible speed. In two days' time, he had recovered roughly eighty percent of his qi and blood power. On the morning of the third day. Lin Zheyu rose early. After practicing martial arts for an hour, he took his saber and left the city. The area outside the city was desolate. Nearly all the commoners who lived outside the walls had fled if they could. When the rebel army attacked, the most unfortunate victims would be these civilians who lacked the protection of city walls. A large portion of the displaced refugees was comprised of these people, while the remaining thirty percent or so were unlucky souls who had followed the crowd in fleeing the city only to meet disaster. Lin Zheyu's previous incarnation had been one of those unlucky souls. Passing by Ma Family Village, Lin Zheyu discovered that it was also completely deserted, having become a ghost village. Along the way, he spotted an army of about three thousand soldiers marching toward Guanning City. The army carried a heavy murderous aura, far beyond what the City Guard under Senior Brother Han could compare to. Entering the mountain forest, Lin Zheyu did not linger, heading straight toward Lion Valley. As he walked, he noticed that the bandits in the mountains were far fewer in number, whether because they had fled upon seeing the impending rebel invasion or for some other reason. *Rustle, rustle, rustle.* A gentle breeze blew past, stirring the mist in the forest. Outside Lion Valley, a poisonous miasma hung thick and perpetual, never dissipating throughout the year. Lin Zheyu stopped outside Lion Valley and looked toward the entrance, spotting quite a few figures. The sentries keeping watch had increased. Lion Valley was surrounded by mountains on all four sides, with very few entrances leading inside, all of which were extremely hidden. This was the only entrance Lin Zheyu knew of, which he had discovered last time by tailing the bandits. *With last time's lesson, sneaking in will be much more difficult now,* Lin Zheyu thought to himself. He did not use knockout powder to slip inside as he had done before. There were many hidden sentries stationed at the entrance; if he used knockout powder, he would be discovered in no time. Lin Zheyu tapped his toes and leaped onto a treetop, keeping watch from outside to first figure out the frequency and schedule of the sentries' shift changes. He did not grow careless simply because his strength had increased. The Nine Nether Cult was likely in league with the rebel army; it was hard to say whether Lion Valley held only those dozen or so Qi and Blood Realm martial artists. Lin Zheyu had only seen seventeen individuals in black-and-red robes, but other powerful experts might well reside within the shrine. His visit today was merely to scout the location. If he found an opportunity, he would strike; if not, he would continue to lie in wait and bide his time. The people of the Nine Nether Cult were all fat sheep, well worth expending more thought on. Last time, that single individual in black-and-red robes had brought him an income of several thousand taels of silver. Aside from the martial arts manual and the Blood Pills, there was also a bottle of unknown medicinal pills, which were likely of considerable value. There were four pills in total, emitting a rich medicinal fragrance. Lin Zheyu guessed that these pills were likely potent tonics similar to the Blood-Nourishing Bone-Strengthening Decoction, used for cultivation to boost one's strength. From the scent of the pills, he detected the aromas of several familiar medicinal ingredients, all of which were major nourishing herbs. However, that was only a guess; he did not dare consume them recklessly. Even if they truly were medicinal pills meant for cultivation and strength enhancement, Lin Zheyu had no intention of taking them. Selling pills that could enhance one's strength for silver might be even more worthwhile than consuming them directly.