Chapter 49: Chapter 49: Hidden Qi 7 Layers (Requesting collections, asking for recommendation tickets!)
Unfortunately, in matters of fate, one’s plans might not always prevail. As Chu Lin was about to cultivate the Jade Radiance Grass alone, the disciples who fell down with Shi Xiaole had one after another reached him.
"Senior Brother Chu, we’re so glad you’re okay."
Spotting Chu Lin, a few disciples from Changfeng Sect rushed over, excitedly shouting so loudly that even people who hadn’t noticed Chu Lin began to look over.
Chu Lin was seething inside but had to show corresponding delight on his face.
"Chu Lin, what are you holding in your hand?"
Zhao Nanxing suddenly stared at Chu Lin’s hand, a gleam in his eyes.
"Junior Brother Zhao, it’s what I’ve found. You have no right to ask."
Chu Lin said coolly.
"Ha ha, it’s not up to you to decide! With so many people here, Senior Brother Chu, it’s not good to keep it all to yourself."
Zhao Nanxing met him head-on, instigating the crowd. He was convinced that Chu Lin must have obtained something extraordinary.
Click, click.
Under the crowd’s gaze, Chu Lin’s right fist clenched and unclenched, unclenched and clenched again. Finally, after taking a deep breath, he had no choice but to open his hand.
"Ah, Jade Radiance Grass!"
...
After fleeing together, Shi Xiaole and Yuan Qiuwei stopped to rest after they couldn’t run anymore.
"Junior Brother, if it hadn’t been for you, I would have died here."
Even though Yuan Qiuwei was badly injured and covered in blood, he thanked Shi Xiaole the moment he could.
In the past, although he never admitted it, he had not taken this younger brother seriously. But today’s fight made him realize he had no right to underestimate Shi Xiaole.
Given Shi Xiaole’s present martial arts skills, he would soon become the best among the disciples of Huajian Sect.
Thinking of this, Yuan Qiuwei felt a wave of emotion. However, his injuries jolted him back to reality, and he quickly sat down to heal his wounds.
Shi Xiaole was uninjured. At this moment, he was guarding Yuan Qiuwei while observing their surroundings.
Unbeknownst to them, they had already escaped the tunnel and were now situated on a vast, square piece of land.
With four long tunnels connected to each corner of the area, it must be the central location of this underground space. But the question was, were there any more mysteries?
Suddenly, Shi Xiaole felt a stirring in his heart. It wasn’t the fluttering one feels in the presence of the opposite sex, but a movement in his consciousness.
Following this instinct, he slowly moved toward the northern tunnel. To his surprise, the Stone Qi Cyclone in his mind began to rotate spontaneously at that moment.
The only explanation for this was that there must be a Mystic Crystal Stone in the northern tunnel!
Shi Xiaole trembled with excitement. It took quite a while for him to calm himself down.
His current martial arts skills were not weak, even slightly superior to those of Chu Lin and the other three top talents from Mountain Luyan. However, the main reason for him lagging behind was his lower cultivation level in internal power.
Compared to the four who were at the ninth level of the Hidden Qi Realm, his current rank of mid-sixth level really didn’t stand much of a chance.
Indeed, Shi Xiaole was only fifteen, a bit younger than the four prodigies from Mountain Luyan. But his goal was not to surpass the four, but something even greater.
Mountain Luyan was just his starting point. If he could not surpass the others at the fastest speed, how could he think of making a name for himself in the Martial World?
Looking at Yuan Qiuwei, who was still recovering, Shi Xiaole forced himself to resist the urge to immediately head for the northern tunnel.
Half a 2-hour period later, Yuan Qiuwei finally woke up and said, "Junior Brother, thank you for your troubles."
This mysterious cave, besides Jade Radiance Grass, is likely to contain other opportunities. Seeing that Shi Xiaole hadn’t gone anywhere but stayed to guard him, Yuan Qiuwei couldn’t help but be touched.
"Senior Brother, to avoid being chased by Chu Lin, we’d better leave here."
"Indeed. But which way should we go?"
"We’ve been heading south all along. How about we do the opposite this time and sneak up on Chu Lin from behind?"
Shi Xiaole couldn’t say directly that they should take the northern tunnel in case it raised suspicions. It’s not that he didn’t trust Yuan Qiuwei, but since their relationship wasn’t deep, he thought it prudent to be cautious.
Yuan Qiuwei thought for a moment, felt it made sense, and agreed.
Immediately, the two set off and went into the northern tunnel.
As they moved deeper, the Stone Qi Cyclone in Shi Xiaole’s mind spun faster and faster, as if it were about to lose control.
He activated the Perception Tactics. With the Stone Qi Cyclone at the center, his mental energy extended like invisible tentacles, enveloping everything within ten meters.
In his line of sight, the dark tunnel didn’t reflect any light. However, there were a few places emitting a glow like fireflies’.
Mystic Crystal Stones!
Shi Xiaole was overjoyed. But to avoid arousing Yuan Qiuwei’s suspicion, he had to act nonchalant. Only when passing by the Mystic Crystal Stones did he bend down pretending to pick them.
"Junior Brother, what’s up?"
Yuan Qiuwei saw him and asked.
"It’s nothing; I’m looking for clues that could help us get out of here."
Shi Xiaole replied.
The two chatted intermittently, and by the time they almost finished crossing the northern corridor, Shi Xiaole had a total of six Mystic Crystal Stones that would make the martial world green with envy.
The fluctuations of the Stone Touching Qi Cyclone finally calmed down, indicating that the surroundings had been ’cleaned out’.
However, Shi Xiaole still had some regrets.
To begin with, the Perception Tactics were just third-tier superior Stone Touching methods, while his own Stone Touching Skill was learnt by studying Third Eye Elder’s notes on his own.
With the sensing range only being ten meters, there was no guarantee that nothing was missed, possibly letting several ’fish slip through the net’.
Thinking about this, Shi Xiaole felt a twinge of heartache. But then he thought, being skilled in both martial arts and Stone Touching Skills, he was already luckier than most people, so why should he be greedy?
"Junior Brother, it looks like there is a stone chamber up ahead?"
Just as he was lost in his thoughts, he heard Yuan Qiuwei call out softly.
Shi Xiaole looked and saw an inconspicuous stone door on one side of the wall. Without Yuan Qiuwei having bumped into it, it would have been impossible to discover.
In accordance with the principle of caution, Shi Xiaole opened the stone door a crack with the hilt of his sword, waited for a while without any movement, then, to the admiration of Yuan Qiuwei, walked in.
There were two rows of bookshelves in the stone room, filled with medical books on poisons. In the middle, an old-fashioned medicinal furnace sat. A waft of fragrance filled the room once the furnace lid was opened. There were no pills in the furnace, just some remnants.
"Presumably, this was the residence of an old predecessor who studied medicine here. Predecessor, please forgive the two of us for our unwelcome disturbance."
Yuan Qiuwei earnestly bowed to the void and bumped his head against the bookshelf.
There was a click.
To Shi Xiaole and Yuan Qiuwei’s surprise, a drawer popped out from the inside of the bookshelf, containing a white porcelain bottle and a note.
"I accidentally obtained a bottle of Blood Essence Pills, which can double one’s strength temporarily after consumption, but will drain the blood and qi afterwards, greatly harming the body. Use caution."
The words on the note gave Shi Xiaole and Yuan Qiuwei quite a shock.
"If what this predecessor said is true, the power of these Blood Essence Pills is overwhelmingly strong. However, in dire circumstances, they could potentially be life-saving medicine."
In the martial world, one will inevitably encounter desperate situations from time to time. If the Blood Essence Pills are as potent as described in the note, they could be considered worth their weight in gold.
Yuan Qiuwei picked up the porcelain bottle and pulled open the stopper. Discovering that there were only three blood-red pills, he said, "Junior Brother, since we discovered this together, can I take one pill and turn the other two in to the sect?"
"Senior Brother, you’re not taking any for yourself?"
"How could I be selfish?"
Shi Xiaole looked at Yuan Qiuwei. This senior brother was indeed quite old-fashioned, but his loyalty to the sect was undeniable.
Of course, Shi Xiaole couldn’t match his ’selflessness’.
After they had divided up the Blood Essence Pills, the two decided to stay in the stone room.
For one, Yuan Qiuwei’s injuries had not fully healed and he needed rest. If they accidentally ran into Chu Lin, it would be hard for them to escape.
Secondly, Shi Xiaole also wanted to take this opportunity to quickly absorb the Mystic Crystal Stones. Otherwise, he would not feel at ease until he consumed them.
The two sat in the stone chamber, each in a different location.
Seeing that Yuan Qiuwei was immersed in his healing, Shi Xiaole closed his eyes. He held one of the Mystic Crystal Stones tightly in his sleeve and as soon as he broke its outer membrane, he began to absorb its power.
In an instant, Shi Xiaole felt a surge of powerful spiritual energy enter his body through his arm’s veins, making his entire body feel so comfortable that he almost groaned.
In less than a moment, the first Mystic Crystal Stone turned to dust.
At that time, Shi Xiaole’s internal power had increased more than it had over the past several days.
Without any delay, he began to absorb the second Mystic Crystal Stone, followed by the third and the fourth.
After absorbing four Mystic Crystal Stones in one go, Shi Xiaole’s cultivation in the Hidden Qi realm has reached the peak of the sixth level, only a hair’s breadth away from the seventh level.
At this point, he took out a pill from his bosom. It was a Qi Gathering Pill that he had won at the Golden Phoenix Tower competition.
The Qi Gathering Pill is a miraculous pill specifically designed for cultivators in the Hidden Qi Realm to boost their chances of a breakthrough.
At this critical moment, Shi Xiaole swallowed it without hesitation.
The pill melted as soon as it reached his mouth, transforming into a warm current that flowed throughout his body. A moment later, Shi Xiaole’s internal power began to circulate at a speed far exceeding its normal rate--similar to a dam releasing water at flood levels.
Boom!
A gust of wind blew out from Shi Xiaole, reaching in all directions and waking Yuan Qiuwei who was healing his injuries.
"That power surge, did he break through to the seventh level of Hidden Qi Realm?"
Yuan Qiuwei widened his eyes in surprise, unable to comprehend Shi Xiaole. Three months ago, Shi Xiaole had only been at the second level of Hidden Qi Realm. He had advanced faster than if he were on a rocket.
Feeling his enhanced and pure internal power, Shi Xiaole released a long exhale.
With the foundation of the Fuyang Qi Skill, every time his internal power advances by one minor realm, the increase in his strength is much greater than that of normal people.
For example, the four heroes of Mountain Luyan cultivate a third-rate superior internal power Mind Method. Every time they advance in the Hidden Qi Realm, they can increase their strength by just 20%.
In Shi Xiaole’s case, that number would increase to a full 40%.
Shi Xiaole’s original strength was already comparable to that of Zhao Nanxing. Now that his internal power had increased dramatically, he felt confident that he could defeat Zhao Nanxing in just a few moves.
Even if he had to face the formidable Chu Lin, he should be able to give him a good fight.
