Chapter 58 - 57: Great Yu Foot Dao’s No. 1 Male Technician, Little Zhao

Chapter 58: Chapter 57: Great Yu Foot Dao’s No. 1 Male Technician, Little Zhao

Zhao Ci truly hadn’t expected this. He had inexplicably found himself in a desperate situation with no chance to even use the Celestial Demon Body Refining Secret Technique.

But then, in a surprising turn of events, Gu Xiangzhu actually took the initiative to help him with Celestial Demon Body Refining.

That’s right!

It was indeed possible to perform Celestial Demon Body Refining on someone else.

But the difficulty was more than ten times greater than performing it on oneself.

At the very least, the practitioner’s own comprehension of Celestial Demon Body Refining had to have reached the sixth level or higher.

’The sixth level...’

’I spent so many comprehension points just to barely reach the fourth level. Your sixth level... isn’t that a bit too monstrous?’

’This woman... she must be an absolute monster even within the Demon Sect. No wonder she could become the Saintess.’

’But she’s not a bad person.’

’At least she knows how to clean up her own mess.’

’Phew!’

’This should get me out of danger, right?’

Lady Yue hesitated. "Saintess, this Celestial Demon Body Refining Secret Technique is an unteachable secret of our sect. If his Celestial Demon Body is seen, we..."

Gu Xiangzhu said coolly, "I am only helping him with the Heaven-Forming Demon Body, not teaching him how to use it. To him, it’s nothing more than his physique getting a bit stronger. He has already passed out. He won’t remember anything that happens during this time!"

"But..."

Lady Yue started to ask something more, but Gu Xiangzhu’s voice turned icy. "What? Are you trying to tell me what to do?"

Lady Yue jumped in fright and quickly said, "This subordinate wouldn’t dare!"

Only then did Gu Xiangzhu say calmly, "Stand guard."

"Yes!"

Lady Yue immediately sat down cross-legged and, with a series of CLANGS, took out a large pile of items.

The next moment, Zhao Ci felt an ice-cold hand cover his chest. A bone-chilling True Qi spread out, seeping into every inch of skin and every fiber of muscle.

And then...

It silently exploded.

In a single instant, it destroyed all the skin and muscle in that area.

"Hnngh..."

Zhao Ci let out a muffled groan, feeling his very soul tremble.

Only one thought filled his mind: ’I fucking shouldn’t have used the Limitation Removal Talisman to wake up!’

The Celestial Demon Body Refining Secret Technique itself had a method of using one’s own Inner Source True Qi to destroy the physical body. While that was also painful, it wasn’t *this* painful. Being destroyed from the outside amplified the pain tenfold.

Lady Yue couldn’t help but ask, "Saintess, isn’t he unconscious? Why did he groan?"

Gu Xiangzhu was completely focused on the Celestial Demon Body Refining Secret Technique and clearly had no time for such details. "It must be instinct! Be quiet!"

Taking the hint, Lady Yue fell silent.

Then.

"Hnngh!"

"Hnngh!"

"Hnngh!"

He could only groan miserably, unable to cry out in pain.

Zhao Ci cursed inwardly. ’This old hag is really going for it!’

His First-Grade Flesh Soul was already incredibly tough, yet she was still forcefully destroying it.

Every time a piece was shattered...

...it was an excruciating, splitting pain.

Gu Xiangzhu was also cursing him. "Why is a First-Grade Flesh Soul so hard to destroy? Dammit! Dammit!"

Zhao Ci: "Hnngh! Hnngh! Hnngh!"

This inhuman torture lasted for a full hour.

By now, Zhao Ci had completely passed out. He looked like a human skeleton smeared with a layer of meat paste, utterly misshapen.

All the gushing blood was contained by Lady Yue, suspended in the air to form a sphere of blood.

"It’s finally all destroyed!"

Gu Xiangzhu’s voice was weary. Only then did she circulate her True Qi again, infusing it into the paste of flesh.

With this infusion, Zhao Ci was jolted awake again. But this time, it wasn’t from pain, but from pleasure. He felt every cell in his body singing with joy, and he was enveloped in an unparalleled sense of comfort and security.

It was like a decaying old tree suddenly sprouting new buds.

The core of the Celestial Demon Body Refining Secret Technique was destruction and rebirth.

The more painful the process of destruction...

...the more blissful the process of rebuilding.

It was as if he had returned to being a fetus, being nurtured and formed all over again.

It was so comfortable he didn’t even want to think.

「After an unknown amount of time.」

"Huuu..."

With a long exhale from Gu Xiangzhu, it was all over.

Zhao Ci continued to feign sleep, but his entire being seemed to have entered a miraculous state. Though his eyes were closed, he could clearly see every inch of his own skin.

Inch by inch, it was as smooth and lustrous as jade.

It was filled with an incomprehensible toughness and terrifying power.

’A First-Grade Flesh Soul, a Celestial Demon Body... is this what it’s like?’

"Saintess, are you alright?"

Lady Yue’s voice was filled with concern.

Gu Xiangzhu’s voice was a bit weak. "I’m fine. Just a little exhausted."

Lady Yue was silent for a moment, seemingly observing something, before sighing in admiration. "No wonder you went to such lengths. A First-Grade Flesh Soul is a rarity in this world. It would have indeed been a great pity if it were destroyed."

Zhao Ci: "..."

Lady Yue then asked, "If a body like this were to be refined into a puppet, it would surely become a Divine Weapon. The Saintess has lain low in the Imperial Palace for over a decade. This can finally be considered a reward for your efforts!"

Zhao Ci: "???"

’What the hell?’

’It’s one thing for that Old Deng Zhao Huan to be after my Waizi.’

’But you people are after my physical body too?’

’You helped me with Celestial Demon Body Refining just for this?’

For a moment, his scalp tingled with fear!

"Refine him into a puppet?"

Gu Xiangzhu, however, asked with a faint smile, "Is Lady Yue trying to tell me what to do?"

Lady Yue jumped in fright and quickly said, "This subordinate wouldn’t dare! Th-this subordinate meant that this Celestial Demon Body must not fall into the hands of an outsider. If it were to become a puppet in the Saintess’s hands, it would be a fine thing.

Right now in the sect, the other Dharma Protectors are single-mindedly focused on finding the Demon Monarch, with no thought of self-improvement.

Only the Saintess has worked tirelessly for our sect for seventeen years, as if each day were the same. Your contributions to our sect are no less than those of the Demon Monarch back in his day!

If you can refine this Divine Puppet, you will surely win over the other Dharma Protectors.

Rather than searching for the Demon Monarch, it would be better to let the Saintess become the new Demon Monarch!

This subordinate only has the Saintess’s best interests at heart and has never had any presumptuous thoughts. Please see this clearly, Saintess!"

But Gu Xiangzhu simply helped her up with a faint smile. "Don’t be nervous. I wasn’t blaming you. I have my own plans for his physical body. You needn’t worry yourself over it."

Lady Yue finally breathed a sigh of relief. After a moment’s pause, she asked in a low voice, "Saintess, the Tenth Prince has been mediocre and weak since childhood. Why..."

"It is indeed rather strange."

Gu Xiangzhu’s tone grew grave. She had been in the Imperial Palace for seventeen years; one could say she had watched Zhao Ci grow up. Both his conduct and his cultivation could only be described as "mediocre and weak."

He hadn’t even undergone his first Body Refining at the age of seventeen. Within the Imperial Family... he was a complete disappointment, even when compared to his peers from ordinary noble families.

And yet, how long has it been?

His change in personality could be explained away as him being provoked; after all, it wasn’t uncommon for people in this world to suddenly have an epiphany.

But this cultivation level...

Gu Xiangzhu shook her head. "My Enchanting Skill will wear off in a quarter of an hour. You should leave as soon as possible!"

"Yes! This subordinate takes her leave!"

Lady Yue replied.

With a WHOOSH, the sound of one person’s breathing vanished from the room.

Gu Xiangzhu seemed very tired as well. She made no further movements, and only her slightly ragged breathing could be heard.

Zhao Ci continued to feign sleep, only opening his eyes languidly after a quarter of an hour had passed.

"Mother Concubine?"

"You’re awake?"

Gu Xiangzhu smiled faintly. "How do you feel?"

Looking at Zhao Ci again, her mindset had undergone a subtle change.

Before, Zhao Ci was just an asset in her business. Even if he had some strange and stunning ideas in his head, it was difficult for him to provide any core assistance.

But now...

A First-Grade Flesh Soul, and his True Qi was pure. Even if he only cultivated the Physical Body Divine Treasure, his future achievements would not be low.

She could no longer treat him as a simple business asset.

Moreover, this boy seemed to be hiding quite a few secrets.

’I really don’t know if this is a blessing or a curse!’

The feeling of events gradually slipping from her control made her feel antsy, but she couldn’t let it show.

Zhao Ci sat up and stretched, his face filled with excitement and exhilaration. "I feel like my whole body is brimming with power! Mother Concubine, what just happened? I thought it would be a blessing just to form a Fifth-Grade Flesh Soul. Why... what kind of miraculous Secret Technique did you use?"

Gu Xiangzhu: "???"

She stared into Zhao Ci’s eyes, feeling that his surprise and confusion didn’t seem feigned. She asked, "The fact that you could form a First-Grade Flesh Soul has little to do with me. Your body is filled with an incredibly vast and pure Imperial Extreme True Qi. Did you not know that?"

"Huh?"

Zhao Ci froze for a moment. He frowned in thought for a long while before asking in surprise and doubt, "When I broke through just now, that True Qi did indeed surge out from my Dantian, but... I don’t have that much True Qi in my Dantian at all! Mother Concubine, are you sure this wasn’t caused by your Secret Technique?"

Gu Xiangzhu’s expression was grave. She really didn’t know how to explain this situation.

Someone who could cultivate this kind of True Qi had to be a one-in-a-million cultivation prodigy, one who might have even reached the legendary Harmony Realm.

Yet this boy claimed he had no idea he had so much True Qi in his Dantian.

Even with her vast knowledge, she couldn’t explain the mystery behind it.

"Could it be..."

Zhao Ci suddenly changed the subject.

Gu Xiangzhu asked, "Could it be what?"

Zhao Ci scratched his head. "Actually, your son has always trained diligently in the past. I thought I had fully comprehended the Qi-Sensing Chapter, but every time I finished cultivating and guided the True Qi into my Dantian, I’d find that my True Qi had inexplicably decreased. It was as if something inside my Dantian was constantly devouring my True Qi.

Only recently did it seem to get full, which is why your son was finally able to accumulate enough True Qi for Body Refining.

I never expected that today, it would spit it all out in one go."

This was the excuse he had prepared long ago.

’Worst case, I’ll just play the role of a fallen genius for a while!’

’Anyway, my own mother cultivated on an Immortal Island, so it’s normal for her methods to be a bit strange.’

Sure enough.

Upon hearing this, a trace of astonishment flashed in Gu Xiangzhu’s eyes. She quickly said, "I didn’t expect that treasure to actually work."

The corner of Zhao Ci’s mouth nearly twitched. ’This woman really knows how to play along.’

He quickly asked, "What treasure?"

Gu Xiangzhu replied swiftly, "You don’t need to know. You just need to know that it is of great benefit to your cultivation. Now that you have formed a First-Grade Flesh Soul, the past few years of delay were completely worth it."

Zhao Ci looked like he wanted to ask more, but he swallowed his words.

Gu Xiangzhu let out a breath and stood up. "Your breakthrough today was quite smooth. Now is when you’re at the peak of your energy and spirit. Why don’t you take this opportunity to return to the Tenth Prince’s Mansion and sort out the Alcohol Refining Technique?"

As she stood up, she felt dizzy from the immense exertion and couldn’t help but stumble.

Zhao Ci quickly stepped forward to support her. "Mother Concubine! How about we do it tomorrow? You’ve been busy all day and are exhausted from standing guard for me!"

Gu Xiangzhu retorted, "What? You think I can’t even handle being this tired?"

Zhao Ci: "I..."

[Gu Xiangzhu’s Current Wish]: This boy’s attitude is strange. If he continues to make excuses and obstruct me, I must find a suitable reason to cripple him. Wish Fulfillment Reward: Comprehension Value +100, Refusal Talisman x1.

’Woah!’

’An unexpected turn of events made this woman forcibly help me with a round of Celestial Demon Body Refining.’

’With the sunk cost having increased dramatically, she seems to have become even more irritable.’

Zhao Ci then thought about what had just happened. Although the woman hadn’t agreed to refine him into a puppet, she hadn’t objected either.

’As expected of a Demoness from the Demon Sect.’

’Such a venomous heart.’

Zhao Ci was very scared.

And when he got scared, he got angry.

And when he got angry, a desire for destruction would well up inside him.

So, he gritted his teeth and said, "Of course not! Your son is just worried that Mother Concubine is too tired. How about this? A few days ago, seeing how weary you were, your son specially learned a foot bath technique to relieve fatigue. Let me help you relieve your fatigue first. Once you’ve rested a bit, it won’t be too late to go to the Tenth Prince’s Mansion. It will only take the time of one incense stick; it won’t cause any delay."

"No..."

"But your son’s heart will ache!"

Gu Xiangzhu: "..."

The arch of her foot flexed instinctively, and she stared intently into Zhao Ci’s eyes.

As for Zhao Ci...

...his face was full of sincere filial piety, along with a perfectly-placed hint of guilt.

~~~~

(I was originally going to release these Chapters on schedule. But after reviewing the manuscript, I found the last few Chapters were a bit slow. So I decided to just release four Chapters today. The premium release will be moved up to Monday. I hope everyone will show their support and keep up with the latest Chapters.)