Myriad Poison Scripture!

"Retract." Lu Changsheng immediately drew back his qi and blood. From releasing his qi and blood externally, to turning it into silken threads and slaughtering dozens of martial artists in a flash, to finally retracting it, the entire process had taken merely a breath or two. Yet in just those one or two breaths, his immense reservoir of qi and blood had nearly run completely dry. Replenishing such a massive expenditure would likely require a long period of rest. "Turning qi and blood into silken threads combined with the Instant Kill Technique really works wonders, and its power is formidable!" "Perhaps in the future, I could create a large-scale, long-range martial technique centered around external qi and blood release!" A spark of inspiration flashed through Lu Changsheng's mind. Creating a martial technique required inspiration. Now that he had that spark, with his comprehension and the profound foundation built from practicing countless techniques, he would naturally be able to create a powerful art of his own, provided he was willing to invest the time. However, now was not the time to invent martial arts. Having dealt with the martial artists of Xu Family Manor, Lu Changsheng walked straight toward the headless corpse of the armored man, Zhao Xing. He grabbed Zhao Xing's body with both hands and heaved with all his might. *Crack.* Cracks spiderwebbed through the ground as Lu Changsheng forcibly hauled Zhao Xing's corpse out of the bedrock. Stripping off the iron armor, he searched Zhao Xing's body. The man had been the Left Emissary of the Myriad Poison Cult, Zhao Xing, and the strongest martial artist Lu Changsheng had ever encountered. He was far more formidable than the "Blade-Trailing Heavenly King" Li Ji or "Ghost Face" Chen Sanjiu from before. His physical conditioning in particular far exceeded that of ordinary Refining Organs martial artists. With Zhao Xing possessing such fearsome physical prowess, Lu Changsheng was naturally keenly interested in the martial arts he practiced. Upon searching thoroughly, Lu Changsheng indeed found a roll of parchment. The parchment was covered in dense, tiny characters. "The Myriad Poison Scripture?" Lu Changsheng spotted the small script at a glance; it truly was a manual of martial arts. "Sir, you must never practice the Myriad Poison Scripture—it is an evil art of the Myriad Poison Cult!" Suddenly, a familiar voice reached Lu Changsheng's ears. "Hm?" Lu Changsheng looked up and turned around, finding that the speaker was Shen Ying. Shen Ying was wounded in the shoulder, where a crossbow bolt remained embedded, not daring to pull it out rashly. Even so, he had staggered to his feet and tottered over to Zhao Xing's corpse. Looking at Lu Changsheng, he bowed respectfully and spoke slowly, "Thank you, sir, for saving my life." "I know the Myriad Poison Cult very well. They possess an evil art known as the Myriad Poison Scripture. This scripture is their sacred text, practiced by everyone in the cult, and can lead directly to the Divine Strength Realm!" "However, this technique is deeply sinister. One must temper their body with various poisons from childhood. Without the foundation of body tempering through venom, practicing the techniques in the Myriad Poison Scripture is certain death!" Lu Changsheng was mildly surprised, but he did not think Shen Ying was lying to him. Besides, whether it was an evil art or not, he could judge for himself. "Thank you for the warning. I'll consider it carefully." Lu Changsheng stowed the parchment roll away. He looked at Shen Ying and said, "There are still many imprisoned apothecaries and physicians here, as well as those harmful Strengthening Blood Pills." "Since you know so much about the Myriad Poison Cult, I'll leave the remaining matters here in your hands." With that, Lu Changsheng took his leave and prepared to depart. He had no desire to get entangled in these trivialities, nor did he wish to expose his identity. With so many dead, having to deal with the magistrate's yamen and various other factions would be an immense hassle. Leaving Shen Ying to handle the aftermath was the best solution. After all, Shen Ying bore a blood feud against the Myriad Poison Cult that could only end in death; Shen Ying naturally had no fear of the cult's retaliation. "You have saved so many lives, sir. May I know your honored name?" Shen Ying asked hurriedly. Without looking back, Lu Changsheng slipped into the passageway, leaving behind only a single sentence: "We crossed paths by chance. What need is there for a name?" His voice still echoed through the subterranean hall, but Lu Changsheng had already reached the surface. Xu Family Manor had originally been celebrating a wedding, but now it was in total disarray. Many people had fled back to their homes. Lu Changsheng had not forgotten Squire Xu. Known as "Philanthropist Xu," this squire was the pillar of Xu Family Manor. Yet who would have thought that Squire Xu was actually an operative of the Myriad Poison Cult? Lu Changsheng went straight into the bridal chamber, where the groom and bride were huddled together in terror. "Where is your father, Squire Xu?" Lu Changsheng asked. "I... I don't know." Lu Changsheng scrutinized the groom. He was Squire Xu's son, but he did not appear to be lying. Lu Changsheng glanced at the bride, who was drained of color and trembling in dread. He turned and left, searching the surroundings thoroughly, but there was no sign of Squire Xu. It was basically certain: Squire Xu had fled. The squire was ruthlessly decisive, abandoning his home, his estate, and even his own son to flee alone. "Decisive indeed!" Lu Changsheng shook his head. With Squire Xu fleeing so decisively, there was nothing Lu Changsheng could do. Still, Lu Changsheng's purpose in coming to Xu Family Manor had been achieved. At least Apothecary Cheng and the others were safe and would be able to return to Miaoshou Garden tomorrow. Thereupon, Lu Changsheng departed Xu Family Manor and returned to Miaoshou Garden. Inside his room, Lu Changsheng took out the parchment roll from his robes. Inscribed upon it was the *Myriad Poison Scripture*. Unless it was mere grandstanding, any martial art styled as a "scripture" was certainly extraordinary. Though the parchment roll was small and contained relatively few words, its contents were profound and rich. As Lu Changsheng examined it closely, delight welled up within him. It truly was a martial art called the Myriad Poison Scripture. Moreover, it was not merely one technique, but four! The Myriad Poison Scripture was divided into the Strengthening Blood Chapter, Tempering Bone Chapter, Refining Organs Chapter, and Divine Strength Chapter! All four complete chapters of martial arts were recorded upon this single parchment. To possess such a complete heritage showed that Zhao Xing's status as the Left Emissary was truly extraordinary. Lu Changsheng began reading from the Strengthening Blood Chapter. After all, the Myriad Poison Scripture was a continuous, inherited system of martial arts. Starting from the Strengthening Blood Realm, one had to ingest various poisons from a young age. At the beginning, one consumed poisons with mild toxicity, then circulated the Strengthening Blood method of the Myriad Poison Scripture to temper the body, allowing it to adapt to the toxins before gradually moving on to far more potent poisons. This method was exceedingly dangerous and carried an enormous mortality rate, with a success rate of only thirty to forty percent. Out of ten people, perhaps only three or four would survive. Yet once a martial artist survived this hurdle, practicing the Myriad Poison Scripture presented little further danger. Furthermore, as various poisons were integrated throughout the body, subjecting it to the daily stimulation of toxins, their physical conditioning would improve at a rate far outstripping ordinary people. The same held true upon reaching the Tempering Bone and Refining Organs Realms, granting physical prowess far beyond typical martial artists. This was precisely why Zhao Xing had been able to wear such heavy iron armor without compromising his agility. It was because Zhao Xing cultivated the Myriad Poison Scripture, giving him physical strength and resilience far superior to ordinary Refining Organs martial artists. What was more, if one managed to break through to the Divine Strength Realm through the Myriad Poison Scripture, transforming their marrow, exchanging their blood, and remolding their very form, there was a certain chance of forging the Myriad Poison Physique. Once the Myriad Poison Physique was forged, channeling qi and blood in battle imbued every strike and move with lethal venom—a horrifying poison that even a Divine Strength Realm martial artist might not withstand. However, even if one cultivated the Myriad Poison Scripture from childhood and reached the Divine Strength Realm step by step, forging the Myriad Poison Physique remained extraordinarily difficult. Across the entire history of the Myriad Poison Cult, martial artists who had successfully formed the Myriad Poison Physique were few and far between. Yet whenever a warrior with the Myriad Poison Physique arose, the Myriad Poison Cult would inevitably usher in an era of glory! "Impressive!" "This Myriad Poison Scripture truly is a formidable martial art. It's just a pity the mortality rate is so high. Moreover, if one doesn't start practicing it from the Strengthening Blood Realm, they can forget about practicing it later." "Attempting to force its practice without that foundation is almost certain death!" Lu Changsheng let out a long breath. As for the Myriad Poison Scripture, he could not practice it right now. Even so, Lu Changsheng had not come away empty-handed. Within the Myriad Poison Scripture, he discovered an extraordinary elixir known as the Myriad Poison Great Elixir! Once ingested and paired with a secret bone-tempering method from the scripture, this marvelous pill could actually transform marrow! "The Myriad Poison Great Elixir..." The name of this miraculous elixir sounded vaguely familiar to Lu Changsheng, as if he had heard it somewhere before.