Chapter 49: Return to Mount Hua (2)

After judging that it was no longer a trap, fighting felt useless. Liu Zhengmu channeled more than eighty percent of his internal qi, aiming to finish the fight.

"Haah!" he shouted, darting forward. He needed to close the distance between him and Wu Ye as much as possible. There was a difference in their reach, so it was better to get as close as possible.

"Heh!" Wu Ye sneered. "This is the problem with you orthodox cultivators!"

Surprisingly, Wu Ye seemed happy when Liu Zhengmu closed in on him.

Liu Zhengmu tightened his grip on his sword.

Something isn't right!

He had an ominous feeling. However, he had already launched a deadly attack. He was already attacking faster than he could see, and his overwhelming internal qi was also being released.

However, the ominous smirk on Wu Ye's face showed no signs of disappearing.

Clang!

Sparks flew as their blades clashed. The sword qi from orthodox and evil cultivators created energy waves, sending them across the surroundings.

"Pteu!" Wu Ye spat out phlegm mixed with blood.

"Urgh!" Liu Zhengmu groaned, his face darkening.

"You... used poison?"

He looked down to see a small needle embedded in his side, piercing through his clothing.

"I dipped the needle in poison extracted from Crane Spirit Grass. It's one of the most vicious poisons known to man! Hahaha." Wu Ye cackled, licking his lips.

"Urgh..."

Liu Zhengmu hurriedly retreated. He tried asking for help, but he couldn't make a sound. The poison had begun to spread, coursing through his body.

"You wasted too much qi fighting me; there's no way you can neutralize that." Wu Ye sneered. "I'll kill you painfully so that you'll beg me for death!"

Liu Zhengmu's vision blurred.

"Master!"

"Huh?" Wu Ye turned, spotting someone approaching from behind Liu Zhengmu.

"Xu...chuan..." Liu Zhengmu rasped, his voice weak.

"Keke, your disciple, huh?"

Wu Ye welcomed Zhou Xuchuan, thinking his appearance was a good thing. "Getting humiliated in front of your disciple is good, but killing the boy right in front of you will be a hundred times..."

"Do you even know who you just messed with?!" Zhou Xuchuan roared, flying up like a hawk.

Then he shot down like a wasp. His power was focused not on his sword but his foot.

"You got quite the temper!" Wu Ye laughed, finding the situation funny. He raised his left hand, where he had the hidden weapons, and tried to grab his foot.

Crack!

"Huh?"

Originally, he tried to snatch the boy by the foot and hold him upside down. However, he failed and the situation turned out totally different from what he expected. His fingers bent backward at grotesque angles, the flesh between his index and middle finger ripped out, dangling by a bloody thread. The shock even crushed the bones in his wrist.

The shock was transferred to his wrist as well, crushing the bones in his wrist like candy.

"What in the world..."

Wu Ye stared at his hand, momentarily forgetting the pain in his shock. He had used a significant amount of qi. Blocking a kick from a twelve-year-old should have been simple. Yet, here he was, his hand mangled. The situation was so ridiculous that his head couldn't accept it.

"Haap!"

Zhou Xuchuan swung his sword at Wu Ye, who was standing in a daze. He didn't use any sword art. He simply drew his sword from side to side. However, the qi contained in the attack could be considered special, as even the air reverberated. Wu Ye sensed the danger and attempted to block.

"Too late," Zhou Xuchuan declared coldly.

Slash!

Wu Ye's head flew through the air, his face frozen in a mask of disbelief. For an Absolute Realm expert, his final moments were pathetic.

"Master!" Zhou Xuchuan rushed to Liu Zhengmu's side, his voice laced with urgency.

"Urgh..." Liu Zhengmu groaned in pain.

This is bad.

Zhou Xuchuan's face hardened.

But I'm not totally out of options.

He could tell from a glance that the poison wasn't ordinary. Every moment of hesitation could be critical.

"Please excuse me, Master."

He reached into the pockets of the unconscious Liu Zhengmu. He soon found the wooden chest he had given his master earlier.

It's here!

It was the box of Lesser Circulation Pills from the Shaolin Temple.

I don't know what kind of poison the Crane Spirit Poison is, but the Lesser Circulation Pill should be able to neutralize it.

Normally, curing poison required the right antidote, but it could be substituted for spiritual medicine in certain situations.

The energy from the spiritual pill would be consumed a bit, but compared to my master's life, it's a small price to pay.

He took out a pill, put it in his master's mouth, and poured some water from a bamboo bottle to help him swallow it.

"Master, if you can hear me at all, circulate your qi. I'll help you."

He gently laid Liu Zhengmu down and placed his hands on the latter's chest. Ideally, he'd perform this in a lotus position, but that wasn't possible at the moment.

Don't get distracted!

Focus, extreme focus!

This was about his master's life. He couldn't risk making a mistake and putting his master in danger.

Zhou Xuchuan blocked out distractions, even the gnawing worry about leaving them unguarded. Right now, this matter required his full attention.

He helped Liu Zhengmu circulate his qi.

It's no good. He totally lost consciousness.

He tried inserting his qi into his master's body to no avail.

I have to do everything.

Fortunately, Liu Zhengmu was his master. Aside from the Violet Haze Divine Art, they had learned the same cultivation arts. Zhou Xuchuan had achieved full mastery of the Plum Blossom Six Cardinal Cultivation Art in both his past and present lives. Minute control of internal qi was as easy as turning his hand.

Let's hope that he doesn't regain consciousness.

Zhou Xuchuan almost said his thoughts out loud, but he swallowed it in fear that his master might hear it.

He also had experience consuming the Lesser Circulation Pill before, so activating the energy of the spiritual medicine to neutralize the poison wasn't a problem either.

However, it would be a big problem if Liu Zhengmu were to regain consciousness while he was treating him, and react to the internal qi moving inside his body against his will. Zhou Xuchuan wished he could wake his master up and help him neutralize the poison safely, but there was no time. He had to take the risk.

Please!

Time and accuracy were key. He couldn't afford to be slow, yet every move had to be precise, as not a single mistake could be allowed.

He shifted his hands from Liu Zhengmu's chest to his lower abdomen, where the lower dantian was. Qi flowed from his fingertips, branching out like roots throughout his master's body. There was no reaction since their natures were the same

There are four.

There were four types of energies filling Liu Zhengmu's body. The first was his own qi, and the second one belonged to Zhou Xuchuan. The third was the poisoned qi, and the last was the qi from the spiritual medicine.

What mattered here were the latter two. Zhou Xuchuan carefully guided his own qi to envelop the pill's energy, controlling it..

The poison is spreading quickly. Seventy percent has already spread.

Zhou Xuchuan arrived immediately after Liu Zhengmu was poisoned and killed Wu Ye. That didn't take long at all. Yet, the poison had already spread to this extent. It was truly a vicious poison.

Master!

Twitch!

Liu Zhengmu didn't move. It was the energy of the spiritual medicine within him. It was Zhou Xuchuan controlling it, guiding it from the dantian throughout his master's body.

I'll not miss anything!

A breathtaking chase began. Zhou Xuchuan acted like a predatory beast about to hunt. However, he didn't stay low and wait to launch an ambush. The poison was moving, so he had to chase with all his might.

The spiritual qi from the Lesser Circulation Pill condensed into a sphere, then branched out into many strands, searching every corner of Liu Zhengmu's body.

First is the heart!

His priority was the heart, as it was the center of the body. If the heart were to weaken, it would affect the whole body. However, being a vital organ, it had great immunity and defenses. The poison invading the heart was slower than the poison invading other parts of his body.

Zhou Xuchuan seized the opportunity to use the spiritual qi to surround the poison qi and burn it. The amount of spiritual qi decreased as a result.

Done!

His next target was the poison qi targeting the nerves in the spine. Fortunately, the poison hadn't reached the head. If the poison were to invade the brain, there would be severe consequences even if it was cured, so it had to be protected at all costs.

Slowly...

Around the middle of the neck was the Mutism Gate Acupoint, which was one of the acupoints of the Governing Vessel of the Extraordinary Eight Meridians. There were many nerves around the Mutism Gate Acupoint, so one wrong move could lead to complete paralysis. There were also many fatal acupoints around the area.

At this point, Zhou Xuchuan didn't hurry. He drew out the poison qi from below with caution. He didn't burn it immediately with the spiritual qi either, because he didn't know what consequences it could have.

Done.

A hint of color returned to Liu Zhengmu's face.

I've finished the difficult parts.

He could relax a little now. He relaxed slightly and resumed driving out the poison.

I can't remove it all at once.

The amount of poison qi was not small. If he erased such an amount all at once, he would not be able to avoid stimulating the body. Liu Zhengmu would definitely regain consciousness.

Then!

There was no time, so he didn't hesitate. Zhou Xuchuan made a quick decision. He gathered the remaining poison qi into one concentrated area, carefully shielding the surrounding meridians with spiritual qi to prevent damage.

The poison extracted from the Crane Spirit Grass was pushed through the meridians by the pure qi from the Lesser Circulation Pill and flowed toward its new destination—Zhou Xuchuan.

It's coming in!

A significant amount of poison qi entered Zhou Xuchuan's body through his palm. His face darkened slightly.

Done!

The poison whittling away at his master's life was no more. Other than the bits that he burnt away, he absorbed the rest.

Fearing that he might leak the poison he just took in, he quickly got away from his master.

"Mm!" Liu Zhengmu groaned. Fortunately, his complexion had returned to normal.

Phew, now I have to deal with this.

Zhou Xuchuan pushed himself and reached the bushes nearby. As soon as he got there, he sat down in a lotus position, ready to deal with the poison within him.

Hm?

Just as he was about to move the poison qi, Zhou Xuchuan couldn't help but question.

Was my control over internal qi so powerful?

Now that the immediate crisis was over, he had the chance to think. Before this, the only thing he was thinking about was the possibility of his master being crippled or dying if he made a mistake.

When his extreme focus ended, all sorts of thoughts came to mind.

It's way too quick.

Controlling the qi was not a problem. Liu Zhengmu's qi was no different from his own, so that wasn't surprising. There was also the fact that he had risen to the Harmony Realm in his previous life. It would be strange if he couldn't do that.

The difference was that the qi moved too fast. This was beyond his expectations. It was too easy. Although he did it effortlessly, it wasn't supposed to be so simple. In fact, it should have been very difficult.

Despite that, Zhou Xuchuan didn't make any mistakes and finished it in one go. It even surprised him.

What's the difference?

He tried comparing his current self to himself from his past life.

He had consumed the Water Spiritual Fruit and the Lesser Circulation Pill. However, those two only increased his qi and didn't have any other effects.

If there was a difference, it was that he had learned the Violet Haze Divine Art, but that didn't seem to be the cause either. The Violet Haze Divine Art didn't have an effect of increasing one's control over qi.

Ah!

Something flashed in his mind.

The Ten Thousand Convergence Art!