Chapter 197: Four Extremes Breathing Technique【 Guī Yuān】, Iron Bone Achieved! Buddha’s Child’s Blessing In Isshiki Town
The girl’s pair of plain white palms held a massive lump of flesh.
The surface of this lump of flesh was a vivid crimson, pitted and uneven, as if countless scraps of meat had been forcibly kneaded together into a rugged mass.
It writhed incessantly before Shangshan Che’s eyes, spurting out a strange crimson juice that inexplicably seemed somewhat appetizing.
In stark contrast to its somewhat grotesque appearance was its panel, which made Shangshan Che unable to resist swallowing a mouthful of saliva—
【Aggregated Flesh Essence（Extremely Active）】
【Quality: Epic】
【Effect: After consumption, it greatly enhances the effects of Palace of Flesh Cultivation.】
【—As the name suggests, it’s the demon Flesh and Blood Essence forcibly aggregated through special means.】
【Note 1: Please consume it as soon as possible; this Flesh and Blood Essence will completely lose activity after ten minutes.】
【Note 2: After consuming this Flesh and Blood Essence, all similar Flesh and Blood Essences will henceforth be ineffective on you.】
From the description, the origins of this lump of flesh were already quite obvious.
It was the “perfect tonic pill” that Minamoto Shizuka had just rubbed out from that mountain of demon corpses.
But how did she do it?
Shangshan Che recalled and realized that Minamoto Shizuka had merely extended her hand to accomplish this feat that could be called arduous.
And there was no Spiritual Power Fluctuation at all.
In other words, this was achieved by the other party using a Breathing Technique or some other unknown means…
Minamoto Shizuka lifted her eyes slightly, and upon seeing the puzzlement flashing in Shangshan Che’s eyes, she strangely tilted her head,
“You don’t know?”
—Shangshan Che, so he didn’t know this was the power of the Four Extremes Breathing Technique that she cultivated.
—But even if he didn’t know now, he would sooner or later.
Since that was the case, it might as well be said now.
She thought for a moment, pointed at the lump of flesh, and explained: “It was kneaded out by me using Guī Yuān, one of the Four Extremes Breathing Techniques that I cultivate【Guī Yuān】.”
“The specific method is quite simple…”
Minamoto Shizuka gestured slightly with her hands.
As she described, it was first like this, then like that, and thus the power of Guī Yuān could be used to knead so many corpses into this single lump of essence.
Shangshan Che was completely baffled.
But to this day, Shangshan Che finally learned the name of one quarter of the Four Extremes Breathing Technique, though it was personally told to him by his future opponent.
Although he still didn’t understand the characteristics of Guī Yuān Breathing Technique, one of the Four Extremes【Guī Yuān Breathing Technique】, nor its fundamental differences from ordinary Breathing Techniques like the Corona Breathing Technique.
But one thing could be confirmed.
—That Sword Light just now was probably also unleashed by Minamoto Shizuka using Guī Yuān Breathing Technique, one of the Four Extremes【Guī Yuān Breathing Technique】.
With a single sword, she had completely eroded away a powerful demon comparable to Ootama Hoshi.
The consumption didn’t seem that great either.
Shangshan Che tsked in his heart: “Terrifying…”
To think such a person would actually be his opponent standing directly across from him in the arena in the future.
Fortunately, the Seed Battle was still nearly a month away, or even dozens of days from now, before it would officially begin.
Otherwise, if it started now, he wouldn’t have any chance of defeating her at all.
Facing the current Minamoto Shizuka, even if he transformed into a Four-tailed Fox and immediately activated “Rage,” he still wouldn’t be absolutely certain of victory.
Not to mention that the Seed Battle would likely have a bunch of big shots, including Sister Nanjo, watching, so he couldn’t possibly transform into a demon either.
This wasn’t an emotional thought born from seeing that sword just now, but a very rational and precise analysis.
Minamoto Shizuka was just very strong.
This was a fact that had to be acknowledged.
The power of the Four Extremes Breathing Technique could also be seen from these two “small matters.”
As expected of its reputation.
Shangshan Che blinked to interrupt his thoughts, tightened his fingers, and grasped the scalding Flesh and Blood Essence,
“I’ll take this lump of flesh.”
Minamoto Shizuka nodded her chin lightly: “This item is a compensatory gift to you, Shangshan Jun; it would give me a headache if you didn’t accept it.”
Just as he gripped the Flesh and Blood Essence, Shangshan Che could clearly sense through Spirit Control Technique the extraordinarily powerful Vitality forcibly compressed into this small space within it.
Seeing him grasp the Flesh and Blood Essence, the corners of Minamoto Shizuka’s lips also curved into a smile.
She exhaled freely, feeling another deep grinding mark added to the surface of her Heart Embryo.
The eighty-first tempering… completed.
—Clear Mind was truly important.
“Then, Shangshan Jun, consume this Flesh and Blood Essence, sit down here, and begin cultivation.” Minamoto Shizuka pressed out a section of deep blue Blade with her thumb. “I’ll stand guard for you here.”
She stated: “I won’t let you be disturbed in the slightest.”
Hearing this, Shangshan Che looked down at the lump of flesh in his hand.
Consume within ten minutes.
As its creator, Minamoto Shizuka naturally knew that the sooner it was consumed, the better the effect.
But Shangshan Che always felt that Minamoto Shizuka’s intentions weren’t that simple.
—In truth, Minamoto Shizuka had long heard that after cultivating a Breathing Technique to the Palace of Flesh Stage, one’s Qi and Blood would become extraordinarily powerful.
If he began cultivation, the Qi and Blood usually concealed would surge forth, hard to hide.
Her idea was actually very simple.
She simply wanted to use “Shangshan Che during cultivation” as bait to lure the demons in the surrounding Mountain Forest for her to sharpen her blade.
That was all.
—Shangshan Che pondered for a moment, then still sat down.
Since she had said so, it wouldn’t be good for him to refuse.
Anyway, there was still about an hour until the safety line for returning to the Sengoku Period, so cultivating for a moment wouldn’t hurt.
But he still needed one more layer of insurance.
After setting a forty-minute alarm in his body using Spirit Control Technique, Shangshan Che tossed the scorching hot Flesh and Blood Essence into his mouth and swallowed it directly.
Of course, he didn’t forget to use a portion of Soul Incense Ash（Small）.
In the next instant, the fragile Skin Membrane wrapping the massive Vitality was silently broken down in an instant by the Corona Breathing Technique and Spirit Control Technique.
Boom!
Shangshan Che only felt as if a bomb loaded with Qi and Blood had exploded inside his body.
It even gradually heated up his thoughts, which had been forcibly calmed by the Soul Incense Ash, making them scalding hot.
If this torrent of Qi and Blood were allowed to rampage freely inside his body, the consequences probably wouldn’t be good.
Shangshan Che took a deep breath, closed his eyes tightly, and pushed the Corona Breathing Technique to its limit.
Bone Forging, begin!
Immediately, a deafening crackling sound emanated from within Shangshan Che’s Physical Body.
Equivalent Pain and transformation arrived together!
Along with it came the Qi and Blood spilling out like a Ryu, shooting straight toward the clouds.
“Not bad cultivation…”
Minamoto Shizuka satisfactorily withdrew her gaze, turning her eerie eyes toward the greedy stares emerging from the viscous Darkness.
She tapped Hotarumaru at her waist, which also emanated a bloodthirsty desire, and grinned coldly like an Evil Spirit,
…
Thirty-eighth minute.
The rumbling Bone Forging commotion in Shangshan Che’s body gradually subsided, returning to silence.
That straight pillar of Qi and Blood was also perfectly retracted from the sky into his body by Spirit Control Technique.
He slowly opened his eyes, a wisp of unexpected astonishment flashing in them: “The entire Iron Bone Stage was actually completed in a single cultivation session.”
Was it that the effect of this Flesh and Blood Essence was simply too good, or was it because…
【Because you consumed “Aggregated Flesh Essence（Extremely Active）” and perfectly absorbed its effects using Spirit Control Technique·Qi, followed by arduous Bone Forging…】
As expected, it was the effect of Spirit Control Technique.
Shangshan Che remarked to himself in his heart.
If it were before Spirit Control Technique had the “Qi” suffix, even consuming this essence wouldn’t have yielded such powerful effects.
This Spirit Control Technique… though it didn’t directly help much in Combat, it was terrifyingly strong in support.
Whether it was Spiritual Power cultivation or his current massive increase in control over all forms of “Qi.”
【Final: Your skill, Corona Breathing Technique proficiency +497!】
【You completed Palace of Flesh Cultivation·Iron Bone Stage in one go!】
【Your Bone strength has slightly increased!】
【Your Qi and Blood strength has increased!】
【Your Physique +2!】
【Corona Breathing Technique（Jade Bone 0/400）】
【Effect: Cultivate to Perfection, bones like jade marrow.】
【—Wood, Iron, Jade. So… what comes after that?】
“The strength of Iron Bone is more than just a One-Star or One-and-a-Half Star improvement over Hard Bone.”
Shangshan Che lightly tapped his knuckles, feeling the unshakeable Steel Tendon-like bones firmly supporting his musculature.
The further enhancement in Bone strength provided benefits to the overall Physical Body that couldn’t be fully reflected by mere Physique attributes.
He slightly twisted his joints, producing a crackling sound far louder than before.
Minamoto Shizuka, who had just swung her final Blade, turned back, her eyes widening slightly.
This Shangshan Che had actually broken through a minor Bottleneck in one go.
Covered head to toe in various flesh and blood, no longer in white clothes, she praised: “Your Talent is pretty good.”
Shangshan Che’s eye twitched at the sight.
—How many demons had he attracted just now?
“Average.”
Shangshan Che shook his head, but unusually, the other party didn’t think he was being modest and instead nodded in agreement.
Because, as the Fourth Daughter of the Gen Family, Minamoto Shizuka, who had grown up in the Minamoto Family, had seen far too many geniuses.
Even among her peers alone, there were many comparable to the current Shangshan Che, and plenty who surpassed him, leaving him far behind.
After scanning around and finding no fish that slipped the net, Minamoto Shizuka nodded to him with her blood-covered face,
“Then, farewell for now.”
She sheathed the Demonic Sword, lightening the inexplicable pressure on Shangshan Che’s shoulders.
“Next time we meet, we might be enemies.” Minamoto Shizuka’s gaze was deep, carrying a hint of anticipation. “Shangshan Jun, I’m looking forward to you standing across from me.”
Shangshan Che nodded to her: “Goodbye, Miss Gen.”
Minamoto Shizuka didn’t turn her head, didn’t gather momentum, and didn’t take a step.
Instead, without any warning, she vanished cleanly from Shangshan Che’s sight, like a dream or illusion.
If there had to be a metaphor, it was like a character on a canvas being suddenly erased by the artist with a giant eraser.
Shangshan Che was slightly stunned, immediately searching for Minamoto Shizuka’s Qi within his perception circle.
But there was none.
In that brief moment just now, Minamoto Shizuka had already left his perception circle encompassing hundreds of meters around?
But looking at the sky above, there were no traces of shockwaves left by supersonic speed.
This was truly traceless in coming and going.
“Guī Yuān Breathing Technique, huh…”
Completely not understanding the principle behind it, Shangshan Che narrowed his eyes and murmured softly.
—Minamoto Shizuka’s appearance once again proved that the Three-and-a-half Star Rank was an extraordinarily vast river.
In the great river, there were fledgling ducks just stepping into the water from land; and there were dragons who traversed thousands of li through the river in a single breath, spanning thousands of meters.
Moreover, if he wasn’t mistaken, Minamoto Shizuka’s cultivated Guī Yuān Breathing Technique seemed to still be at the “Sea of Qi” stage.
Because there were no traces of Tempering on her Skin Membrane.
“The heroes Under Heaven are truly delightful.”
Shangshan Che couldn’t help but sigh.
Then, he took out the Key of History and held it, injecting Spiritual Power into it.
Everything was ready.
It was time to return to the Sengoku Period.
…
In the sky above Western Mikawa, inside the one-way transparent Floating Cube.
Noon.
Due to the existence of the flying Half-dead Bird, Two-Foot Adult consumed a large amount of Vitality to transform the originally single-sided Floating Board into a floating hexahedral cube.
This way, even if Half-dead Birds appeared outside their field of view, they usually wouldn’t detect the Floating Cube.
At this moment, Two-Foot Adult maneuvered the Floating Cube, which had flown to an altitude of a thousand meters, to stop, and asked Imagawa Yoshimoto beside her, whose leg edges were trembling slightly for some reason,
“Lord Imagawa, where should we scout first to check the specific situation?”
—This is, a bit too high.
Imagawa Yoshimoto felt a strange dizziness just from looking down, her legs suddenly going a bit weak.
She didn’t know why she felt this way.
It was clearly her who had asked Two-Foot to ascend to this height for better terrain observation.
And she herself could still see clearly.
This should have been a good thing.
Imagawa Yoshimoto secretly panted several breaths, trying to get her uncooperative body to adapt quickly.
But only on Two-Foot Adult’s third repetition did she hear the latter’s words clearly.
Imagawa Yoshimoto clenched her fists, closed her eyes and thought for a moment before giving her answer,
“Isshiki Town.”
With her eyes closed, her thoughts suddenly became clear,
“—It’s a key water transport hub, so there are many and miscellaneous people coming and going; going there would make anything we want to do more convenient.
Moreover, this should be the town in Western Mikawa hardest for demons to infiltrate; if even here has fallen, there’s no need to look at other places.”
Imagawa Yoshimoto’s tone was steady: “Hanzō’s intelligence also mentioned that the number of demons in Isshiki Town is the fewest, but whether that’s changed now still needs to be confirmed with our own eyes.”
“The more critical the moment, the less room for carelessness.” She stared seriously at Two-Foot Adult. “At key nodes, even the slightest oversight could lead to irreparable failure.”
“Lesson learned.”
Two-Foot Adult, who had been focused on the heartstring, straightened her expression and nodded heavily.
“So, Two-Foot.”
Two-Foot Adult suddenly heard Imagawa Yoshimoto switch to a nonchalant tone, stating without giving a reason,
“Can we lower the altitude first?”
Before the puzzled Two-Foot Adult could respond, she suddenly felt the originally ethereal and illusory heartstring connection become extraordinarily clear!
Standing inside the Floating Cube, Shangshan Che looked around with slight novelty.
Then, he looked at Imagawa Yoshimoto, who was still sitting upright even in this empty high altitude.
Sitting like that in Armor must be uncomfortable.
Shangshan Che reached out and patted the shoulder of Imagawa Yoshimoto, who was lowering her head, not knowing what she was looking at: “Lord Yoshimoto, I…”
“Ugh!”
From the intense trembling transmitted through his fingertips, Shangshan Che could clearly feel that Imagawa Yoshimoto had been greatly startled by this pat.
Hm?
Strange, wasn’t my appearance obvious enough?
He clearly hadn’t concealed his Qi, and with Imagawa Yoshimoto’s attainment in Breathing Technique, she should have noticed immediately.
After several full seconds, once her breathing had calmed, Imagawa Yoshimoto turned back as if nothing had happened and asked,
“Tetsu-kun, how did you appear?”
“Through the connection with the Shikigami, that is, Two-Foot…”
Shangshan Che raised his hand and smiled awkwardly: “Sorry for startling Lord Yoshimoto with that sudden touch just now.”
“No matter, just a trifle.”
Imagawa Yoshimoto had just shaken her head and was about to point below when she saw Shangshan Che take out her Japanese Bow, larger than a person, and hand it over.
Then she received the quiver and a large bundle of Arrows “enchanted” by Shangshan Che.
This interruption completely eliminated Imagawa Yoshimoto’s chance to suggest lowering the altitude.
She silently took the Japanese Bow, then began briefing Shangshan Che on the current situation.
Five minutes later.
Shangshan Che nodded in agreement: “Then let’s head to Isshiki Town first to observe the situation.”
Two-Foot Adult immediately drove the Floating Cube, arriving half an hour later above a spot about three kilometers from Isshiki Town.
At this Distance, only Imagawa Yoshimoto’s eyes could see clearly, and it was also a range those Half-dead Birds wouldn’t focus on.
Imagawa Yoshimoto narrowed her eyes, her slender eyelashes trembling slightly.
Several full minutes later, she finally spoke,
“Isshiki Town… at least on the surface, matches what Hanzō said.”
“No corpses strewn outside, normal Business continuing, plenty of people on the streets—far better than the situation at Yoshida Castle.”
Shangshan Che listened silently, looking at Isshiki Town on the Panel map, which also had quite a few red dots.
There were plenty of Shijie Worms in Isshiki Town.
In other words, there were no shortage of Affliction Kin inside the city.
More importantly, it was less than ten kilometers from Nishio City, where Affliction was located.
At this short Distance, Affliction could turn it into a hellscape with a wave of its hand.
So how could the situation inside the city be this good?
Weird, too weird.
Shangshan Che not only didn’t lower his guard but affirmed in his heart that he must figure out this eerie phenomenon today before he could head to Nishio City with peace of mind.
Thus, he immediately said: “I’ll go down to Isshiki Town first for a field investigation; Lord Yoshimoto and Two-Foot stay in the cube.”
“Because I need someone with a God’s-eye view… um, who can oversee the overall situation and remind me.”
Shangshan Che looked at Imagawa Yoshimoto, whose expression had undergone several subtle changes following his words.
He then took out a Yellow Talisman flickering with Spiritual Light from his Storage Bag and handed it to her,
“Lord Yoshimoto, this is a【Sound Transmission Talisman】; stick it on your hand and you can talk to me over long distances.”
The Sound Transmission Talisman was a minor Onmyōdō Spell that even a One-Star Onmyoji apprentice could easily learn, but it wasn’t very practical.
Because the Sound Transmission Spell was easily interfered with by Spiritual Energy Fluctuations in Heaven and Earth, often disconnecting at critical moments and causing major incidents.
To the point that this thing was less reliable than ordinary police radios.
But in the Sengoku Period, with pitifully little Spiritual Energy in Heaven and Earth, the Sound Transmission Talisman was very useful now.
Onmyōdō Spells also needed to be used according to local conditions.
Although maintaining the Sound Transmission Talisman’s effect required continuous consumption of Shangshan Che’s Spiritual Power, it was negligible to him now.
Imagawa Yoshimoto mastered it after a brief try.
She raised her hand, placed the Yellow Talisman by her mouth, and whispered,
“Can you hear me, Tetsu-kun?”
“Very clearly.”
Shangshan Che’s words were as faint as a mosquito’s hum, yet Imagawa Yoshimoto, also using the Sound Transmission Talisman, heard them crystal clear.
The head of the Imagawa Clan immediately widened her eyes, staring intently at the not-too-small Yellow Talisman in her palm.
Her beautiful eyes sparkled, already envisioning how much this little thing could boost the efficiency of military Information transmission.
Imagawa Yoshimoto held her breath: “Tetsu-kun…”
Shangshan Che, about to leap down into the refugee procession on the ground, turned back and understood what she was thinking from the girl’s expression.
He shook his head somewhat regretfully: “After World Revival, it would barely work.”
Without looking at Imagawa Yoshimoto’s stunned expression, Shangshan Che leaped down from this thousand-meter altitude.
His descent speed was fast, yet it produced no sound noticeable to ordinary people.
Because air naturally counted as a form of Qi.
Several seconds later, at the end of the refugee procession over a hundred people long, an additional slender youth appeared—Unremarkable in height, Unremarkable in appearance, and Unremarkable in clothing among the hundred, drawing no attention at all.
Another nearly half hour later, Shangshan Che finally reached the gates of Isshiki Town with the procession.
He glanced at the silent Warrior Monks on either side, feeling puzzled in his heart.
Jodo Shinshu had great Influence in Western Mikawa, and seizing power was one thing… but why were these two Warrior Monks indifferent to this hundred-person procession?
Weren’t they afraid that these hundred might carry fatal illnesses, or that there were Danger elements among them?
—Jodo Shinshu colluding with demons.
Hanzō’s words from the intelligence surfaced in Shangshan Che’s mind.
It seemed the credibility of this statement was also very high.
At this moment, he heard someone in the refugee procession exclaim in delight,
“No one’s stopping us? They’re ignoring us? Hahaha! I thought I’d be refused at the gates and starve to death!”
Another refugee rasped: “I told you, Jodo Shinshu treats everyone equally.”
Yet another added dryly: “Moreover, there are Masters here who can Disperse diseases… this is my last hope.”
Buddhist Masters, huh.
In Shangshan Che’s eyes, the person who said this was already covered in reddened pustules; if left alone, they might be a corpse in the wilderness in two or three days at most.
As soon as the topic of Masters came up, sporadic, feeble excited voices rose in the procession,
“Where’s the Master? I want to go!”
“Me too!”
Now, Shangshan Che finally understood.
This group of refugees who had come to Isshiki Town from who-knows-where had come entirely for those so-called Buddhist Masters who could Disperse and heal diseases.
Because almost every one of them carried major or minor illnesses, with only a few maintaining relatively healthy bodies.
Shangshan Che looked around the somewhat bustling marketplace and found that the surrounding crowd showed no surprise at the arrival of this group of refugees.
Incomprehensibly, almost no one shunned this procession of disease carriers, as if it were commonplace.
Those doing Business continued trading, those eating continued eating, and even passersby treated them as nothing.
Clearly a relatively good phenomenon, yet Shangshan Che felt an indescribable eeriness.
He walked a bit further and noticed that most people wore Prayer Beads, small Buddha statues, or prayed before eating.
These people all believed in Jodo Shinshu.
And crucially, those who believed showed no signs of illness.
Not a single one!
Could it be that Jodo Shinshu’s Masters truly had profound Buddhist attainment, easily curing these myriad diseases and sending the Affliction Kin away empty-handed?
Shangshan Che sensed the eerie peaceful atmosphere in Isshiki Town, utterly baffled.
Suddenly, Imagawa Yoshimoto’s voice came through the Sound Transmission Talisman: “Tetsu-kun, hurry north—lots of people are swarming there!”
Shangshan Che’s expression sharpened; he no longer followed at the end of the procession but slipped through the crowd unobtrusively, quickly heading north.
Along the way, two women’s conversation drifted over,
“Your son caught a cold?”
“Yeah… but it’s fine. Now every afternoon, the temple holds a Gratitude Ceremony; as long as Buddha’s Child bestows Buddha’s grace, this little illness will be gone in no time.”
There were many such conversations.
All about who caught what disease, including not a few cases of pox, that is, smallpox and other fatal illnesses.
But people didn’t take it to heart at all.
As if, as long as they went to the Jodo Shinshu temple and received Buddha’s grace from Buddha’s Child, all diseases would be cured.
This wasn’t normal, far from normal.
Where in the world was there such a good thing—merely believing in a religion to be immune to all disease Disasters.
Shangshan Che narrowed his eyes and sneered coldly in his heart.
He wanted to see just what kind of demon or monster that so-called Buddha’s Child was.
“Che Adult!”
Two-Foot Adult’s somewhat urgent words interrupted his thoughts: “Can you go touch that Buddha statue nearby!”
Shangshan Che turned and spotted a lifelike wood carving of a Buddha statue seated on a lotus.
The Buddha statue’s Eyeball was lively, holding a compassionate smile, almost as if…
It was staring straight at him.
