Chapter 325 - 210: Blood Lingzhi, Examination

Chapter 325: Chapter 210: Blood Lingzhi, Examination

If Xie Yuan hadn’t already undergone one Qi and Blood transformation and had the protection of a profound body-nourishing technique, swallowing this medicine would have set his internal organs ablaze and turned him into a human torch.

This was simply not meant for anyone below the Metamorphosis Realm. Even a Martial Artist at the Qi and Blood First Transformation Realm couldn’t take it without a solid foundation in Inner Power. To do so would be to swallow poison.

However, following the immense heat and unbearable pain came the tyrannical medicinal effects of the Blood Lingzhi.

A pure yet violent surge of medicinal energy erupted from his Dantian. It was as if his Qi and Blood had burst their banks, flooding directly into his meridians.

Xie Yuan instantly felt his meridians bulge and quickly used his internal breath to protect them. As the Qi and Blood washed through, it saturated his meridians with its essence. Supported and nourished by his internal breath, his meridians were the first to grow tougher.

Then, the Qi and Blood continued its passage. His internal organs, muscles, and bones were all inundated by this tyrannical energy, causing his blood vessels to swell as his entire body turned crimson.

"Hnngh..."

Xie Yuan’s brow furrowed tightly. He couldn’t help but throw his head back and let out a muffled groan. All his muscles were engorged with blood, making his body seem to have expanded by a full size. Even his clothes looked like they were about to burst at the seams.

’This medicinal effect is too tyrannical!’

’And this is only one-fifth of the Blood Lingzhi. Good thing I wasn’t greedy and tried to take it all at once.’

But the tyranny wasn’t just in the sensation; it was also in the actual gains.

With this much Qi and Blood entering his body, the strengthening was so rapid it was almost visible to the naked eye. Otherwise, why would there be so much pain?

On the panel before his eyes, the numbers for his Golden Bell Shield were jumping constantly. The growth was so rapid it was clear that even without using the Arhat Stance to direct it, the Qi and Blood was automatically following the Cultivation Technique’s pathways to strengthen his physical body and fortify the Golden Bell Shield. There was so much surging Qi and Blood that it felt like it was about to overflow.

Seeing such a ferocious effect, Xie Yuan’s furrowed brow immediately relaxed. His body didn’t even feel that uncomfortable anymore. He had never been afraid of hardship, only of suffering for nothing. And seeing that this hardship yielded such incredible results, his only thought was to wish for more. He could take it.

The effects of this single dose of medicinal concoction lasted until the moon reached its zenith and began its slow descent westward before finally subsiding.

Xie Yuan slowly exhaled. The breath was incredibly long and searingly hot, with a faint reddish tinge.

It took him more than ten full breaths to completely exhale. His face was flushed, as if he had just drunk a fine, strong wine.

"That packed a punch!"

[Golden Bell Shield - 4th Layer: (1573/5000)]

A satisfied smile spread across Xie Yuan’s face as he looked at the numbers on the panel.

"One flask of medicinal soup pushed my progress up by nearly five hundred points. That’s almost a month’s worth of hard work!"

Advancing in the Qi and Blood Metamorphosis Realm required a vast amount of Qi and Blood, so progress was extremely slow. A month of his own bitter cultivation would likely yield results only slightly better than what he’d absorbed from this single dose.

And this was just the initial effect. Over the next few days, as he continued to cultivate, he would digest the residual medicinal power, accelerating his progress even further.

This speed was truly worthy of the Blood Lingzhi’s reputation as a treasure. And this was only one-fifth of it. If he consumed the entire thing, he would be on the verge of breaking through to the 5th Layer of the Golden Bell Shield, the Qi and Blood Second Transformation Realm!

’Now *this* is what you call a treasure of heaven and earth! My perilous journey through the West Desert wasn’t in vain. All the pain I just went through was worth it!’

Elated by the leap in his cultivation, Xie Yuan couldn’t resist running into the courtyard to practice a set of his Fist Skill, his movements generating powerful gusts of wind. After savoring his newfound strength, Xie Yuan relaxed his stance and nodded repeatedly.

’So that’s why Martial Artists flock to ruins the moment they appear. The hidden treasures, Spiritual Medicines, Cultivation Techniques, and weapons... obtaining just one of them could mean a massive boost in strength.’

’I don’t even have a bottleneck, and the Blood Lingzhi’s help is still this significant. For those Martial Artists who are stuck, if they got their hands on Treasure Materials like this, they might break through their barrier overnight and soar to new heights. The allure of such Spiritual Medicine must be impossible to resist. No wonder people are willing to fight and die for resources.’

To him, these Treasure Medicines were accelerators for his cultivation. To others, they could be the key to unlocking their entire future path. The importance was simply incomparable. He was already feeling envious over this Treasure Medicine; it wasn’t hard to imagine how desperate he would be if he were truly facing a bottleneck.

Fortunately, he had never encountered a bottleneck, and he had also "stocked up" at the Slaughter Tower. For a good long while, at least, he wouldn’t have to worry about supplementary Spiritual Medicines.

’Four more doses to go. I’ll take my time with them... And after that, there’s the Mountain King Ginseng. After the Mountain King Ginseng, I still have the other miscellaneous materials.’

Xie Yuan thought cheerfully.

Even if they were just miscellaneous odds and ends, the very fact he’d made room to bring them out meant they were extraordinary by the standards of the outside world.

He glanced at the crescent moon in the sky. It wasn’t long before dawn. With his Qi and Blood surging and his spirit rejuvenated, Xie Yuan simply sat cross-legged on his bed to regulate his breathing, waiting for daybreak.

...

「At the first light of dawn.」

Xie Yuan finished washing up and changed into the snow-white uniform of a Cloud Mountain Sword Sect disciple.

Unlike his old uniform, this one had two cloud patterns embroidered on the chest and cuffs—one more than before, the mark of the Inner Sect.

Wearing his new uniform, he went to the dining hall and ate a hearty meal. Having cultivated for nearly the entire night, Xie Yuan’s appetite once again astounded the head chef. ’Good thing I filed that report and increased the budget,’ the chef mused. ’This newcomer is a real glutton...’

Then, before it was time to assemble for the morning lesson, Xie Yuan stood in the large training grounds of the Inner Courtyard, silently warming up.

Promptly at the appointed hour, the gaunt-faced and perpetually stern Instructor Lv appeared on the training grounds.

As soon as he stepped onto the grounds, his eyes swept over the assembled disciples. Seeing that everyone was present, his gaze then fell upon a figure he had never seen here before, and he paused for a moment.

Noticing that the other disciples’ attention was more or less focused on Zhang Mountain, Instructor Lv simply cleared his throat. At once, everyone stood at attention, chests puffed out and heads held high, not daring to let their focus wander for even a second.