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墨書 Inktalez
Human Sacrifice
Qi Shaoyu's outwardly gentle demeanor initially made me hesitate; I thought he was a person who avoided conflict. However, his final words solidified my resolve: this duel must take place, and it must be against Qi Shaoyu.
Qi Shaoyu's attitude was even more contemptible than those who looked down on me from the start. He didn't want to fight me, merely believing it would dirty his hands, and winning would be an insult.
As I passed by the Miscellaneous Room, two Managers, one fat and one thin, were gloating at the entrance. The Fat Steward said, "Yang Hao, your draw has been announced."
"Really? I wasn't aware. I wonder which senior brother I drew?" I asked.
"It's a young..."
The Fat Steward was about to continue when the Thin Steward interrupted him, saying, "It's just a newly admitted New Disciple. Even so, you won't be able to defeat him."
"I can't even defeat a New Disciple?" I replied. "How about we make a bet?"
"Sure, what are we betting on?" the Thin Steward asked.
"You know that every month, Huang Laohu required the people in the Water Storage Room to hand over a Qi Gathering Pill, right?" I inquired.
The Fat Steward responded, "We know about that. His cultivation has stagnated, and using Qi Gathering Pills is no longer effective for him. That's why he often comes here to exchange them for goods."
I continued, "Exactly. Now those are mine; there are still three to five hundred Qi Gathering Pills left unused, plus there are a few stones with Spirit Energy stored in my house. I'd like to wager these against you. If I lose, all those Qi Gathering Pills and everything else you want from my room will belong to you. If I win, do you have anything of equivalent value as a stake?"
The Thin Steward replied, "Of course we do. No matter how many Qi Gathering Pills you have, they were all given to you by us. To be honest, my brother and I have ten genuine Qi Gathering Pills. We'll wager those ten against you."
"Hmm?" I asked with confusion. "What do you mean by that?"
The Thin Steward chuckled and said, "The Qi Gathering Pills given to you are actually the lowest quality waste pills. The disciples in the Alchemy Room discard them during their practice because the medicinal ingredients are uneven and the Spirit Energy has dissipated. They are far inferior—one hundred times less effective than real Qi Gathering Pills. Otherwise, how could every Outer Sect Disciple receive two each month while you laborers also have two?"
"Alright, it's settled then. Wait for me to win against the New Disciple in three days, and don't run away," I said as I walked up the mountain.
"A promise is a promise!" Thin Steward replied.
Fat Steward nudged Thin Steward and said, "Did we actually agree on three days just now?"
Thin Steward slapped Fat Steward and retorted, "Of course we did! Is it my fault? Heh heh, his opponent is Brother Shaoyu, who ranks among the top one hundred in the Outer Sect. We can just lie back and win!"
After returning to my residence, I kept pondering over the Cultivation Method I learned today. The Fireball Technique isn't really a Cultivation Method; it's merely a Daoist Art that can't be used in actual combat. The Wind Spirit Technique is more useful; it allows me to move like the wind and act like lightning, significantly increasing my speed. However, what delighted me the most was the Mountain Split Technique.
With three days left until the competition, I planned to practice the Mountain Split Technique during this time. Although I had memorized its operation method in my mind, there was still a gap when it came to applying it. In the Outer Sect, fights often resulted in death, and there were many real battles, while my own combat experience was quite limited. Qi Shaoyu stood out among eight thousand Outer Sect Disciples after just one year of entry; he must be quite formidable. I just didn't understand why he had been refusing challenges since successfully entering the top one hundred of the Outer Sect.
Qi Shaoyu is a powerful figure from the Purple Qi Coming from the East Realm, while I am merely at the Late Stage of Qi Entry Realm. Given that this person might be somewhat eccentric, I had to be cautious if I wanted to win this duel.
I closed the doors and windows and then took out the Seven-Colored Elixir that I had never dared to consume before.
After cultivating a trace of Dao Qi, touching the Seven-Colored Elixir felt like encountering an ocean. The Seven-Colored Elixir is an unparalleled pill created by Medicine King Sun Simiao, who consumed vast amounts of longevity herbs during his lifetime and refined them using his own body as a furnace.
Taking it could prolong life, make one immune to all poisons, and even restore youth. The exact effects are unknown even to Medicine King himself because no one has ever refined pills in this manner before.
The Spirit Energy within the Human Pill is like an ocean, while Dao Qi in a Daoist's body is transformed from Spirit Energy. I hesitated for a moment; if the Spirit Energy from the Human Pill were to transform into Dao Qi within my body, how terrifying would that be? My first thought wasn't about skyrocketing power but rather about exploding from within.
The reason I hadn't consumed the Human Pill immediately was precisely due to this concern.
When Mr. Chang infused his Dao Qi into my body before I had cultivated any myself, I felt the swelling sensation of Dao Qi filling my Meridians. At that time, he was very worried about bursting my Meridians. Now that I'm at the Late Stage of Qi Entry Realm, I'm still considered quite low-level compared to those who practice cultivation.
I looked at the Seven-Colored Elixir in my hand, which resembled a pebble. The Human Pill was pioneered by Medicine King; there's no record of such a thing in Daoist history, and Medicine King never had a method for consumption.
I brewed a cup of water and soaked the Human Pill for a while, then took it out. The surface of the Human Pill showed no change, and the water that had soaked it contained not a trace of Spirit Energy. I found a knife to cut the Human Pill, but after exerting considerable effort, I only left a faint mark.
After much internal struggle, I finally steeled myself and swallowed the Human Pill!
At first, nothing happened. It felt like I had swallowed a raw egg. However, when I began to circulate my Dao Qi to refine the Human Pill, a torrent suddenly surged forth, sweeping through my limbs and meridians. I felt as if my Meridians and Acupoints were being shattered in an instant, and I couldn't help but let out a cry of agony.
I hurriedly tried to rein in my Dao Qi, wanting to distance it from the Human Pill, but the Dao Qi was already rampaging within me, completely beyond my control. Blood quickly seeped from my skin's pores. It felt like thousands of ants were biting me; I lay on the ground convulsing as my skin tore and blood flowed freely.
I thought I was about to die when suddenly my pupils turned black. Black characters began to ooze from my wounds, mysterious runes enveloping my entire body more densely than ever before. Perhaps the Book of Life and Death sensed that I was in grave danger!
The furniture in the room shook violently as a fierce wind howled outside, accompanied by thunder in the dark night. Suddenly, images of all the buildings around me filled my mind, every blade of grass and tree, including Zhu Cong, who was staring wide-eyed from outside the window.
I looked up at Zhu Cong. He gasped in shock at my black eyes and stumbled back, trying to escape. I reached out to him from afar, and he flew back like a piece of paper. He crashed through the window and landed before me, his sleeves billowing as blood seeped from his skin and was drawn into my body.
In just one second, Zhu Cong had become nothing more than a husk; his body drained of blood completely. The next moment, he collapsed to the ground, reduced to a pile of charred bone powder.
Meanwhile, the Human Pill within me continued to emit an overwhelming amount of Spirit Energy. I finally realized that this Human Pill was not something someone at my level should consume. Only a sect leader or perhaps a Daoist Grandmaster could handle it. If it weren't for the presence of the Book of Life and Death within me, I would have surely exploded from this Human Pill's power.
Ultimately, after enduring the relentless torment of the Human Pill's effects and the pain of my body being repaired by the Book of Life and Death, I lost consciousness. When I awoke again, it was already the third morning.
By noon, it would be time for my duel with Outer Sect powerhouse Qi Shaoyu.
Before me lay a pile of ashes scattered by the wind on the ground; one of the windows had been broken. I didn't know if anyone had come during this time. Huang Laohu ruled over the Water Storage Room; without his permission, no one could approach his residence. During my seclusion, I also prohibited anyone from coming near mine; it had only been two or three days—surely no one would have come.
As for Zhu Cong, who betrayed me—he had now become nothing but dust; it was well-deserved punishment for him.
I looked at my hands and arms; my skin was intact with no signs of tearing. Strangely enough, however, it felt as if there was something new within my senses.
Buddhism and Taoism have always emphasized the concept of the Six Roots and Six Senses. The eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind represent the five senses, while there is an additional sense beyond these, commonly referred to as the Sixth Sense.
I am not sure if this is what awakened my Sixth Sense, but suddenly I could see the dust particles swirling in the air. A bug that resembled a mosquito flew past from a nearby window.
“It’s almost winter; how can there still be mosquitoes…” My eyes followed the mosquito as it flew by, allowing me to discern its patterns, the amplitude of its wingbeats, and the movement of its antennae during flight.
Within me, I saw a vast sea, a turbulent Qi Sea.
Floating above the Qi Sea were several objects: one was a Zhou Compass inlaid with copper, and another was a bundle containing medicine vials.
With a thought, I silently willed the Zhou Compass to appear. It vanished from the Qi Sea and materialized in my hand. With another thought, it returned to the Qi Sea.
I did not understand why such changes were occurring. The acupoint at my Dantian had disappeared; now, as my Dao Qi circulated, it was entirely drawn from the Qi Sea.
I was uncertain of my current state, but I could feel that I was significantly stronger than before.
Most importantly, I was safe and sound after having narrowly escaped death.
I stepped out of my room and glanced at the sun before heading toward the Outer Sect Training Arena.
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