Chapter 116: Martial Saint’s Murky Later Years, Blood Jade Pill Complete
In the small town.
Ning Qi strolled through it. His current appearance was that of an ordinary young man. After settling the matter, he rarely had the mind to savor the worldly fireworks, which gave him some other feelings.
Having avenged the extermination of his family, his state of mind had unknowingly become much more peaceful, and his inner heart was serene.
He did not rush to head to the location of the True Martial Underground Palace discovered by Dragon Mountain Daoist back then. Previously, using the Virtual Sword Core Disintegration Great Method to quickly deal with Thin Elder had still somewhat impacted his physical body. Although the side effects of this explosive seed method were small, they were not absent.
Ning Qi planned to spend two or three days adjusting his state before condensing another Virtual Sword Core.
This way, he would also have the confidence to cope with any unexpected changes.
The calls of street vendors occasionally entered his ears. Ning Qi also heard many martial artists’ secret talks or experiences, which even included quite a few words like ‘treasure’ and ‘secret realm’.
But he had no interest in learning more about them.
For him, putting energy into these things would instead be a waste of time.
This was the first time he had come down the mountain so far alone, giving him a deeper understanding of the Great Yan Dynasty.
Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles.
Previously, Ning Qi’s understanding of Great Yan all came from books or others’ narrations, which ultimately could not compare to seeing it with his own eyes.
“The Great Yan Dynasty dominates the Central Region in this world, occupying fertile land. Below it are the Thirteen Provinces, centered on Yan Province, and below the Thirteen Provinces are the prefectures, commanderies, and counties, governed in levels. Controlling such vast land is truly not easy.”
“Now seeing it, although the people of Great Yan are not as civilized as in his previous life, they can still be considered living in peace and contentment. The chaotic situation in recent years has affected them, but it is still within a controllable range.”
Ning Qi could see it.
When martial artists fought, they also tried their best to minimize the impact on ordinary people. This was inseparable from Great Yan’s powerful deterrent force against martial artists; no one dared to provoke the tiger’s whiskers.
To some extent, Great Yan had maintained a prosperous era for quite a long time.
“Unfortunately, this situation may not last too long.”
“Great Yan occupies the Central Region, with boundless seas to the east, yellow sand desert to the west, Hundred Thousand Mountains to the south, and the grasslands to the north with barbarian tribes. Now, the Demonic Sect within the borders is stirring, the Southern Border has formed an alliance to spy, and although the Northern Barbarian Grasslands are continuously suppressed by King Zhenbei, the specific situation is unknown.”
“If it erupts, Great Yan will likely be attacked from both front and back.”
Ning Qi listened to some exaggerated rumors from the storyteller, lost in thought.
As his cultivation deepened, especially after experiencing several Heavenly Human battles in succession, he gradually came to understand the operating rules of this world.
“Martial Saints are existences that suppress the universe. Apart from Great Yan openly having Martial Saints, the other sides are unknown, but presumably they all have means to contend with Martial Saints to some extent.”
“And besides Martial Saints, it is the Heavenly Human Realm, but the destructive power of Heavenly Humans is actually already very strong, so they rarely act during normal times, only appearing during intense conflicts like the previous period.”
“As for below the Heavenly Human Realm, they are the main force during normal times, with eyes on the prefectures, commanderies, and counties—these people are the true main force.”
“I don’t know when… it will truly become chaotic.”
Ning Qi pondered.
After learning about the Blood Emperor Gu matter, he increasingly felt that undercurrents were surging.
Ning Qi quietly left the storyteller’s alley without anyone noticing.
Three days later.
Ning Qi condensed another Virtual Sword Core. Looking at the sword core that was a few points stronger than before, he smiled slightly at the corner of his mouth. After using it once, he had corrected a small flaw, making this method even more perfect.
Ning Qi left the small town and first headed toward the True Martial Underground Palace location, which was closer.
…
In a place of towering mountains.
This was a relatively remote mountain range in Qingzhou.
Ning Qi arrived stepping through the air.
He slowly descended, his perception constantly spreading outward, landing in a mountain stream where there were traces left by Dragon Mountain Daoist, which only True Martial Disciples could recognize.
“Is this the place where Master discovered the True Martial Underground Palace back then?”
Back then, when Dragon Mountain Daoist was young, he accidentally entered the True Martial Underground Palace and obtained part of the True Martial Inheritance, which led to the current True Martial Sect.
If it was the complete inheritance, there would likely be records about the Martial Saint realm.
Although Ning Qi’s realm was still far from Martial Saint, his combat power was gradually approaching. He was slowly preparing for the path ahead.
“Master once said that after several explorations, no trace of the True Martial Underground Palace was found, and he even invited a friend skilled in Mysterious Gate Array Formations to check, and there was no formation concealing it here.”
Various thoughts turned in Ning Qi’s mind as his perception enveloped the surroundings.
He was also proficient in various miscellaneous studies. When he couldn’t practice martial arts before, he often delved into them, and in the years after, he didn’t give up. He felt that in the world, there shouldn’t be anyone surpassing him in these fields.
But soon.
Ning Qi lightly frowned.
There was indeed no formation concealing in front of him.
He was very confident in his Mysterious Gate techniques; it was impossible for a formation to exist without him detecting any trace.
But he also didn’t sense any trace of the underground palace. In that case, didn’t it mean that the underground palace had already ‘left’ decades ago?
“Go down and take a look!”
Ning Qi’s interest grew even stronger. At least one possibility was ruled out; it wasn’t without gain.
As for how the True Martial Underground Palace left, there were also multiple possibilities.
His Jade Liquid Sea shook inside his body as he operated the Innate Sword Body Secret Technique. In an instant, strands of Sword Gang emerged and shuttled around Ning Qi. During the process of reviving Zhuang Chen’s Sword Bone, this secret technique became even more perfect.
The Sword Gang was light and sharp, instantly piercing a passage.
Ning Qi stepped in.
Entering the underground.
The underground world had nothing special; it was all soil everywhere, which astonished Ning Qi even more. He had thought there would at least be an open space, after all, the True Martial Underground Palace had truly existed here back then, but there wasn’t.
Ning Qi carefully perceived; there was no abnormality.
But suddenly.
His eyes lit up.
He finally discovered something slightly off.
The further he walked outward, the more he could feel that the soil outside was slightly harder. The difference during this period was extremely small, and in the thousand-meter distance underground, almost no one except Ning Qi could discover it.
Ning Qi followed the change in soil hardness, but it completely cut off a hundred miles away.
This meant that the True Martial Underground Palace left from here back then, and before escaping underground, it ultimately disappeared a hundred miles away by some unknown means.
“This… could it be that the True Martial Underground Palace is a living creature that can move freely? After Master obtained part of the inheritance back then, it left.”
He couldn’t help but come up with various guesses.
“Is it some massive exotic beast, or some kind of mechanism?”
Ning Qi walked out of the underground.
Having confirmed that the True Martial Underground Palace had left, staying below any longer was pointless.
He knew that this trip was over.
But it wasn’t without harvest.
“Whether the True Martial Underground Palace is a mechanism, an exotic beast, or something else, since it appeared decades ago, it will surely appear again in the future, perhaps following certain rules.”
“Master only obtained part of the True Martial Inheritance back then, perhaps due to insufficient talent. If the underground palace appears again, I should be able to obtain the complete inheritance.”
Ning Qi planned to return to the mountain and carefully ask about the situation back then to see if he could find the pattern of the underground palace’s appearances.
Perhaps Dragon Mountain Daoist was not the first to obtain the True Martial Inheritance; maybe others had already perished.
Ning Qi erased all the traces.
Then he stepped into the air and left.
He did not continue to dwell on it. Since it couldn’t be found here, he would go to the next place; it was all about luck anyway.
Previously, when Ye Qinghe came down the mountain for experience, she had mentioned to him.
In a small town, she heard a blind old man talk about rumors regarding Martial Saints.
…
The next morning.
Ning Qi slowly walked into the small town.
He had asked Ye Qinghe in detail back then; the blind old man in this small town was a storyteller.
Ning Qi asked for directions and immediately received an enthusiastic reply:
“You’re talking about Elder Sun, right? He’s over in the east of the city; you’ll see him when you go there.”
Ning Qi smiled, nodded in thanks, and slowly walked toward the east. This small town had nothing special, but if there was one thing, it was that the residents here were very friendly, more friendly than the people in other places.
“Martial Saint’s hometown? I don’t know if it’s true or false.”
With such a thought, Ning Qi stopped outside a wooden shed.
The wooden shed was packed inside and out with people.
Very lively.
A loud shout came from inside:
“Old Li, give us another segment? Haven’t had enough today!”
“Elder, please, one more segment, otherwise I fear I won’t sleep well tonight.”
“How about telling the story of Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint?”
Ning Qi’s spirit shook. Listening outside, Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint was the title of the Martial Saint that Ye Qinghe had mentioned before.
An elderly voice came from inside.
The congregation held their breath.
They listened enraptured, with occasional exclamations and uproars.
But Ning Qi’s expression gradually became strange.
“Severing nine heavenly veins to save the common people? Chasing the great sun, ultimately struck by heaven’s Thunder Punishment?”
Even without touching the Martial Saint realm yet, Ning Qi knew this was impossible. It was clearly exaggerated and embellished by this elder himself, but the people loved hearing such tales.
No wonder Ye Qinghe hadn’t mentioned this.
But Ning Qi still listened carefully, hoping to gain some useful information from it.
Soon.
With the sound of a storyteller’s gavel slamming, the congregation left tips and departed reluctantly.
Ning Qi looked at the blind elder who was lowering his head to pack his things.
His gaze showed astonishment.
This elder was no ordinary person; he had impressive cultivation.
The elder raised his head and smiled:
“Young man, you’re from out of town, right? The storytelling for today is over; come back tomorrow.”
Ning Qi smiled:
“You can’t see, Elder, so how do you know I’m young, and how do you know I’m from out of town?”
Although his current image was indeed that of a young man.
“This old man may have blind eyes, but after being blind for so long, I can sense things normal people can’t see. You don’t seem decayed and rotten like an old man like me. As for how I know you’re from out of town?”
The blind elder laughed.
“Locals wouldn’t stand here watching this blind old man pack up.”
Ning Qi smiled and placed a handful of copper coins:
“I quite like the story of Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint that you told.”
The elder waved his hand:
“You’re not the only one who likes it; many people do. If you want to hear more, come back tomorrow.”
Ning Qi cupped his fists and left.
The elder looked up in the direction Ning Qi left and shook his head slightly.
The next day.
Ning Qi came again.
During this time, the blind elder told another story about Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint, but it was still outrageous and exaggerated. The congregation listened with keen interest.
At the end.
Ning Qi smiled and greeted the blind elder before leaving.
He planned to stay here for a while.
Just right to study the Blood King Gu here.
With the previous experience of creating the Golden Jade Pill formula, this time would save much time, mainly by comparing the medicinal properties difference between the sarira and Blood King Gu. Then, using the luminous pearl to guide, he could create a pill stronger in medicinal properties than the Golden Jade Pill.
After all, the Blood King Gu had even more abundant energy than the sarira.
The third day.
…
The fourth day.
…
Ning Qi went to listen to stories day by day, and even many people had gradually become familiar with this regular guest from out of town.
“Little Liu, you’re here again!” Someone greeted him; this was Ning Qi’s alias.
Ning Qi smiled and nodded.
This day.
Ning Qi finally heard a bit of different information.
“Our small town is the hometown of Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint. He grew up here in his youth and returned here in his later years. Someone once caught a glimpse and saw him, but Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint was aged beyond belief…”
This was what Ye Qinghe had mentioned before.
Presumably, Ye Qinghe had also stayed here for a few days.
Ning Qi was very patient.
Continuing to listen.
This information obviously felt much more real, making people as if they saw the desolation of the Martial Saint.
Thus.
Time passed.
Ning Qi had already stayed here for nearly a month, the longest he had stayed anywhere except True Martial Mountain since birth.
The reason for staying so long.
First, to see if there was more information about Martial Saints.
Second, for the Blood King Gu.
Although he had learned from Thin Elder before that there was no resonance or tracking mark above the Blood King Gu, for insurance, Ning Qi still planned to deal with it outside True Martial Mountain, to avoid leaving any hidden troubles on True Martial Mountain.
Three days ago.
Ning Qi had deduced the pill formula with Blood King Gu as the main ingredient, which he called Blood Jade Pill.
He sent a message asking Luo Wentian to send someone to deliver the remaining auxiliary materials down the mountain.
At that time.
He would refine the Blood Jade Pill at the foot of the mountain before returning, so even if the Southern Border Alliance really had a secret technique to track the Blood King Gu, they wouldn’t trace it to True Martial Mountain.
Ning Qi looked up at the torrential rain outside the window and sighed slightly:
“Perhaps Elder Sun only knows this much.”
The Blood Jade Pill formula was complete, and he planned to leave in a few days when the medicinal herbs arrived at the designated spot.
Although staying here didn’t delay his cultivation, he still preferred True Martial Mountain, where there were many Daoist Scriptures waiting for him to read.
Ning Qi held an umbrella and went out.
There were almost no pedestrians on the road.
At the storyteller’s wooden shed.
It was even emptier, with no one there.
Only the blind elder.
With the torrential rain today, even avid listeners wouldn’t come. Originally, Ning Qi thought Elder Sun wouldn’t come either, but unexpectedly he did.
And Elder Sun clearly didn’t expect Ning Qi to come.
“So it’s you, Little Liu…”
The elder smiled with emotion and began storytelling as a matter of routine; this had become his habit over the many years.
Ning Qi listened quietly, relaxing his mind.
In this nearly one month, he had heard many contents more than once, and gradually he treated this period as a special experience, perhaps smiling faintly when recalling it someday.
There were only a few days left before leaving.
He didn’t have too many thoughts.
The torrential rain poured on the wooden shed; one old and one young, one telling stories and one listening, unexpectedly had a kind of inexplicable artistic conception.
A long time passed.
Elder Sun finally stopped. He looked at the rain outside the shed, as if he could really see it.
“Young man, how long have you been here.” He suddenly spoke, not calling Ning Qi ‘Little Liu’.
Ning Qi also looked outside the shed and said calmly:
“Almost a month.”
“One month’s time—how many months does a person have in life? Go back early. This blind old man here isn’t worth you wasting so much time.”
Ning Qi smiled:
“It’s quite good here with you, Elder. I feel this month has been very meaningful.”
This was the truth; this one month had vaguely transformed his state of mind a bit, a feeling completely different from being on True Martial Mountain.
Silence again.
After a moment, Elder Sun’s ethereal voice slowly rose:
“The story of the Martial Saint should probably end long ago. In a while, I should also leave.”
He had seen that Ning Qi was particularly interested in the Martial Saint’s story.
Ning Qi was stunned:
“Where do you plan to go, Elder?”
The blind elder gazed into the distance:
“The Four Seas as home.”
He waved his hand and began packing his storytelling tools, his voice carrying a kind of magic:
“It’s best to pursue matters of Martial Saint realms less. Excessive curiosity isn’t always a good thing.”
Ning Qi fell silent and asked:
“Elder, did someone really see Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint return in his later years back then?”
The blind elder chuckled:
“Perhaps. Who can distinguish true from false? No one knows about Martial Saints. Perhaps they suffer disasters in their later years, or perhaps they want to convey some information but simply can’t.”
His unfocused pupils suddenly lifted, giving a shocking feeling that made Ning Qi’s heart jump.
The blind elder drifted away.
In the pouring rain, he held no umbrella, but the raindrops did not touch him. Occasional pedestrians saw this but showed no astonishment, as if they hadn’t seen it.
Ning Qi stood alone in the wooden shed.
“Disaster? Omen?”
He vaguely felt he had touched upon the secret of Martial Saints.
A long time passed.
Ning Qi finally let out a long breath.
The boat will naturally straighten when it reaches the bridge.
Although he still didn’t know what secrets were hidden after this realm, at least he was mentally prepared.
The rest.
At least he would slowly investigate clearly when he one day reached Martial Saint level combat power.
Ning Qi felt that this point could perhaps be approached after he broke through the Heavenly Human Realm, and he was not too far from that step.
Once the Blood Jade Pill was refined, Ning Qi could accelerate his promotion to Core Elixir.
Then, it would be the Heavenly Human Realm.
The next day.
Ning Qi quietly left.
The storyteller’s wooden shed was still there. After a few days of not seeing Ning Qi come, some people learned he had left and couldn’t help but sigh with regret. Missing a listening companion, the blind elder sighed slightly and continued telling the story of Heaven-Slaying Martial Saint.
…
After leaving the small town, Ning Qi arrived at a prefectural city closer to True Martial Mountain.
He had previously sent a message asking Luo Wentian to prepare the auxiliary materials for refining Blood Jade Pill and send them here.
By the time Ning Qi arrived, the auxiliary materials had already arrived.
In the small courtyard.
Ning Qi laid out stalk after stalk of precious medicinal herbs and casually took an alchemy furnace. For him, pill refining needed no external assistance.
Only the main material remained.
He took out two purple jade bamboo tubes from his bosom, first opening one. The Blood King Gu appeared and circled around Ning Qi. Even controlled by Ning Qi with special syllables, this Blood King Gu had a manic intent.
In these days, Ning Qi had long discovered that this Blood King Gu became increasingly ferocious after maturing.
If the two Blood King Gus were placed together now, they would likely completely lose control.
Even so, this one Blood King Gu kept circling the other purple jade bamboo tube containing the Blood King Gu.
With a thought from Ning Qi, Gang Qi solidified it in mid-air.
In these days, he had already studied the method of using the Blood King Gu.
Its essence lay in the three pairs of wings; the vitality-rich body was secondary. Ordinary people obtaining this Blood King Gu probably wouldn’t know how to use it.
Fortunately, this was not difficult for Ning Qi.
In the recent month, he had occasionally observed the Blood King Gu and comprehended the special syllables obtained from the Fat and Thin Elders, thus creating some methods to draw out the essence blood from the Blood King Gu’s body.
At this moment.
His Gang Qi vibrated at a special frequency, transmitting special syllables that only the Blood King Gu could hear into its mind.
The next instant.
Strands of even denser blood patterns surged on the Blood King Gu’s surface, then converged toward the three pairs of wings.
As time passed.
The three pairs of wings had become like artwork—Blood Jade Wings, beautiful to the point of heart-palpitating, but what moved people most was the extremely dense energy essence.
And the Blood King Gu’s eyes had completely lost vitality.
Ning Qi casually plucked off the three pairs of wings. With a shock of Gang Qi, the remains of this Blood King Gu turned to ashes and dissipated between heaven and earth.
Anticipation appeared in Ning Qi’s eyes.
Without hesitation.
Open the furnace and refine the pill!
Gang Qi turned into incomparably violent flames, but it changed with Ning Qi’s will. One portion of medicinal herbs after another was tempered; the entire pill refining process was as beautiful as a painting, but unfortunately no one could appreciate this scene.
An hour later.
The pill was complete.
Ning Qi’s expression moved, and Gang Qi completely enveloped the small courtyard to prevent any commotion from leaking out.
He opened the alchemy furnace; blood-colored radiance surged, with extremely abundant vitality energy.
“Six Blood Jade Pills.”
Without the slightest hesitation, Ning Qi swallowed one, then operated the Heaven and Earth Millstone Gang Tempering Method to temper his Gang Qi and cultivate.
Rumble!
A rumbling sound that only Ning Qi could hear rang out. The Jade Liquid Sea shook as strands of seawater surged into the great millstone for tempering. However, after consuming the Blood Jade Pill, the great millstone took on blood-colored radiance, doubling the tempering efficiency.
Ning Qi felt the much faster tempering efficiency than before and was delighted.
“Like the Golden Jade Pill, one Blood Jade Pill is enough to accelerate my cultivation by a month’s time, but the effect is better.”
“At this rate… ten Blood Jade Pills would be enough for me to naturally progress into the Core Elixir Realm.”
Ning Qi nodded in satisfaction.
One Blood King Gu refined six Blood Jade Pills, so there would still be two left over.
At that time, whether to keep them for True Martial Sect as foundation or use for other purposes, either way.
But he also felt some emotion.
He truly surpassed his peers by too much. One Blood King Gu was enough for an ordinary Core Elixir Realm to promote to Heavenly Human Realm, but for him, two could only barely let him break through to Core Elixir Realm, and not directly—merely accelerating.
This was normal.
After all, Ning Qi at the Jade Liquid Realm already had strength far surpassing ordinary Heavenly Human Realm, so breakthrough was naturally difficult.
That said, even if there were pills that could directly help break realms, Ning Qi wouldn’t consume them. He needed to ensure his foundation had no flaws at all. So whether deducing the Golden Jade Pill or the Blood Jade Pill, Ning Qi had always aimed at accelerating cultivation rather than direct breakthrough.
Ning Qi’s mood relaxed.
Following the same pattern.
He successfully refined the other Blood King Gu into six Blood Jade Pills as well.
Thus.
Even if the Southern Border Alliance had heaven-defying means, it would be impossible to trace the Blood King Gu.
Currently.
The Southern Border Alliance had no movement yet, presumably not yet aware that the Fat and Thin Elders had lost contact.
But if they really reacted, they would ultimately suspect the Demonic Sect.
That unique poisonous martial art could be traced with a check; after all, Elder Wang had used it on True Martial Mountain before. Although Ning Qi had deliberately erased the traces, he felt that with the Southern Border Alliance’s means, they should be able to find the truth, otherwise they wouldn’t be comparable to the Demonic Sect.
As for Divine Sword Sect being exterminated and Zhuang Chen escaping alive to True Martial Sect.
This point might cause True Martial Sect to be suspected.
But it might also be seen by the Southern Border Alliance as the Demonic Sect borrowing a knife to kill.
After all, True Martial Sect’s overt strength was far from enough to destroy a Southern Border Alliance stronghold. Even adding Heavenly Sword True Person, it would be unlikely. The means and strength shown by the Fat and Thin Elders were not weaker than Dragon Mountain Daoist and Heavenly Sword True Person.
Ning Qi thought carefully.
After confirming no omissions, he headed toward True Martial Mountain.
It was his first time being away from home so long; he was a bit homesick.
