Chapter 357: One Inch of Tendon (Combined Three Parts)

The black dagger, swirling sands, and the strange insects trapping the two mountain runners all lost control the instant the bodies fell.

Only the Three-Headed Ghost was taken by the Six-Eyed Minge .

The dagger had seemingly been waiting for this day all along.

It mercilessly bit off the official’s arm, then rose into the air, swayed slightly, and prepared to vanish into the void…

But it hadn’t anticipated that Xu my lord had already prepared for this.

The three hairpins killed the official, and immediately the skin-dan surrounded it.

The dagger flashed away from the skin-dan, then hovered between reality and illusion.

It flickered in and out around Xu Yuan.

It appeared arrogant and overbearing.

Xu Yuan sneered: “You had a chance to run, yet you didn’t—clearly you’re brainless.”

The Six-Eyed Minge flew over; one yin soldier poked its head out, sucked at the official’s corpse—and drew out his soul.

Of course, someone with the official’s status wouldn’t carry anything like the “Qian Si Method.”

Thus, Xu Yuan now knew every weakness of these strange things on the official’s body.

The dagger possesses the ability to traverse voidspace.

But in truth, its fifth-tier level could never truly move freely—it was restricted to a five-zhang range.

That meant it could teleport no farther than five zhang away.

The dagger still hadn’t realized this.

It wasn’t its fault—it was merely a long, black, bony spike in form.

Killing was its most basic instinct.

It really didn’t have a brain at all.

The skin-dan descended from above, swelling like a skin until it expanded to ten zhang, then engulfed the dagger completely.

The dagger realized it couldn’t escape anymore.

It teleported—and the skin-dan moved with it.

Then Xu Yuan spat fire into it.

The dagger suffered.

After burning for a while, its entire black exterior turned white.

After all, it was only fifth-tier; sixth-tier internal fire could burn it painfully, but truly refining it was not easy.

Xu Yuan never intended to refine it this way.

The skin-dan couldn’t resist its own internal fire; Xu Yuan had to rely entirely on the exquisite fire-control techniques of the Five Cauldrons Cooking Method to burn the dagger without burning his own skin-dan.

Outside the skin-dan, the sand monsters and strange insects had already scattered.

Taking advantage of the dagger’s distraction of Xu my lord, they fled without a trace.

Da Fu chased after them for a while, devouring over a dozen strange insects, but these insects scattered in different directions—Da Fu couldn’t catch them all.

Now only the dagger remained.

Only then did Xu Yuan calmly release the Tiger-Head Guillotine and retract the skin-dan.

The dagger suddenly realized—it was free again!

Then came a sharp “ Ca ” sound, and it was crushed beneath the blade…

Xu my lord’s timing was perfect—the skin-dan and the Tiger-Head Guillotine connected seamlessly.

The dagger now had no master; it was a wild evil.

The Tiger-Head Guillotine was meant to cut such things down.

Xu Yuan pulled the blade down hard—and the dagger cracked into two pieces!

This was, without doubt, the easiest evil Xu Yuan had ever cut down with the Tiger-Head Guillotine.

“Brainless things are easy to deal with,” Xu Yuan said, shaking his head as if boasting to the dagger: See? I have a brain; you don’t.

Then Xu Yuan examined the remains and found a fine material left behind: a bone bead embedded in the dagger’s body.

Xu Yuan placed it in a Xingguo pouch.

He turned to look at the official’s corpse.

The yin soldier had consumed his soul; Xu Yuan now knew the official’s name: Qi Yue, fourth son of the current head of the Qi family of Nandu.

He currently held a minor fifth-rank post in Zhengzhou.

But he was deeply entangled in something huge—he possessed a “piao yin” issued by Master Ruan Tian!

This piao yin did not belong to him; it belonged to a vast interest group including the Qi family.

Qi Yue was the one in this group tasked with doing the dirty work.

Though no one liked him much, he was indeed indispensable.

Xu Yuan found the piao yin on Qi Yue’s person.

It was a blood-red bone tablet bearing a unique symbol.

This symbol directly corresponded to Master Ruan Tian.

No other entity—not even the River Dragon King—could usurp this symbol.

Unless one personally killed Master Ruan Tian.

The piao yin was stored in a metal casket crafted by artisans—the same function as the Xingguo pouch: it completely isolated the terrifying corruption of the bone tablet.

Xu Yuan carefully put it away.

Though he dared not use it, it was still an immensely valuable item.

As Xu Yuan rummaged through the corpse, the body had already turned to rotting flesh.

Because the strange entities bound within the corpse’s tattoos, the weaker ones died along with Qi Yue.

The stronger ones had quietly slipped into the ground during the chaos and escaped.

But Xu Yuan still noticed one strange thing that hadn’t fled.

It had fully emerged.

It was the scales protecting Qi Yue’s vital spots.

From Qi Yue’s memories, Xu Yuan learned this was a special kind of strange entity.

It was born in the sea, taking the form of thick, heavy scales.

Not rare in itself, but difficult to capture.

It attached and grew on the bodies of certain giant fish in the sea.

It seemed to enhance the giant fish’s defensive capabilities.

It had no direct offensive power, but was hardy, firmly rooted, and grew rapidly.

Giant fish entangled by it either grew so many of these strange scales they became too heavy to swim, sank to the seabed, and were crushed by water pressure.

Or the scales grew so densely they sealed the fish’s mouth, starving it to death.

Those who cultivate the “Wen Fa” all seek out this strange entity, bind it to themselves, as if wearing a layer of soft armor.

This strange entity’s defense is extremely strong—comparable to a fifth-tier Wu Xiu.

Xu Yuan thought for a moment, then pulled out the other items on the corpse and spat fire onto it.

Burn it and see—though it might yield nothing, what if it did? No harm in trying.

Worst case, my lord’s sins gain one more: reduce Qi Yue to ashes…

My lord doesn’t care anyway.

Qi Yue carried over five thousand taels in silver notes.

Not too much, not too little—just enough for his daily expenses.

Xu Yuan cursed inwardly: Nandu was decadent; these aristocratic heirs were extravagant, spending thousands daily!

Because he traded with strange entities, he didn’t carry much silver.

Besides that, there were a few artisan items, of low quality, since Qi Yue preferred fighting with strange entities; these were merely auxiliary tools.

But Qi Yue had no cultivation method—Xu Yuan felt a slight regret.

Xu my lord was curious about the “Wen Fa.”

Qi Yue’s two subordinates had been searched and yielded a few hundred taels of silver.

The items on the Dan Xiu were worthless to Xu Yuan—too low-grade.

But there was one cultivation method: the “Thunder-Fire Tuning Method.”

Xu Yuan skimmed through it and found several worthwhile aspects.

It focused on crafting “strange pills.”

Extracting various abilities of strange entities and refining them into external pills for personal use.

Some of its methods for “stripping” strange abilities were original and clever.

The Wu Xiu had given Xu my lord a pleasant surprise.

He carried a long spear assembled from parts—a sixth-tier artisan item.

He also had a pair of arm guards—also sixth-tier!

Xu Yuan couldn’t help but smile: the Wu Xiu must have died in utter frustration.

His entire skillset went unused—he just died of illness!

After examining all these items, Qi Yue’s corpse had been reduced to ash.

From within emerged a shell.

Xu Yuan smiled and put it away satisfied.

The effect of the tortoise shell divination still lingers—this day is auspicious for this great one!

This material clearly came from that scaled evil.

Its defensive power must be considerable; later, give it to my stepmother—she can forge it into a fine artifact.

After organizing all the gains, Xu Yuan finally moved to release the two mountain runners.

The two mountain runners stared hopefully at Master Xu.

The strange sticky fluid, as the odd insects fled, had begun to harden.

Both men’s breathing had grown labored.

Xu Yuan checked them over and said, “Bear with it.”

Xu Yuan exhaled a thread of flame, burning away the sticky fluid layer by layer.

Throughout this process, the two felt as if they were sealed in a clay jar and placed over a fire.

Though they knew Master Xu was saving them, it still felt… like a cooking method!

Didn’t the Master just meet the Witch Cook? Could he have picked up a trick or two?

After a full incense stick’s time, he finally rescued them.

Master Xu’s control over flame was extraordinarily precise—not a single eyebrow was burned.

But their entire skins glowed red, like two crabs steamed to perfection.

The moment they regained mobility, they dove straight into the river beside them.

Plop!

Plop!

Hiss—

Two trails of white steam shot up from the river!

Xu Yuan couldn’t help but chuckle, waiting on the riverbank.

Suddenly, he felt something and pulled out the folded note from his chest—it was Jiao’s message:

Meet me at Guofeng Ridge tonight.

Xu Yuan had planned to leave the mountains immediately, but now he’d have to stay one more night.

He replied to Jiao with a single character: “Good.”

He tucked the note back into his chest and looked up to see two heads emerging from the river.

But both heads were covered in a mass of writhing, octopus-like waterweeds.

This was a common evil in mountain rivers—Water Ghost Grass.

It often colluded with drowned ghosts and ghost infants in the river, working in tandem.

When an ordinary person fell in, the grass would coil around their entire head, while drowned ghosts below gripped their feet.

No matter how they struggled, they’d slowly sink to the riverbed.

This thing loved to eat human scalps.

More precisely, human hair.

When the corpse sank, it simply peeled off the scalp and left.

The rest it left to its partner.

But these two mountain runners were an entirely different case.

Their heads floated up topped with Water Ghost Grass, each accompanied by a drowned ghost rising beside them.

They killed them right in the river.

Then, with a casual tug, they ripped off the Water Ghost Grass and tore it apart in a few swift motions, tossing the pieces into the river.

The two mountain runners climbed out themselves.

They felt deeply moved.

In these cursed Wushan Mountains, we don’t claim to rule unchecked, but ordinary evils rarely give us pause.

Yet when we met Qi Yue and his outsiders, we were captured without much resistance.

In the end, we owed our lives to Master Xu.

Gao Guanzi still held a live fish and offered it to Da Fu with a smile.

After all, Da Fu ate those strange insects—technically, he avenged them.

But the gesture earned Da Fu’s scornful look.

I don’t eat fish!

Gao Guanzi rubbed his head. “You don’t eat fish?”

There’s a pond in Gao Family Village.

But Gao Family Village hasn’t raised ducks or geese in many years.

“Clean up. We’ll spend the night in the mountains. I’ll leave at dawn.”

“Yes.”

The two mountain runners picked up all the weapons scattered on the ground.

Tonight, we definitely can’t go to the Divine Mother Shrine.

The riverside hut wasn’t built in vain.

After tidying up, the three entered the hut.

Xu Yuan couldn’t tell which of the tree eyes was the true seed.

He’d have to wait until he left the mountains to ask Wang Shen for help before advancing to Fifth Tier.

When idle in the hut, he fed himself the herbs Da Fu had found.

Boosted his own medicinal pills.

First, Xu Yuan showed the herbs to the two mountain runners.

Neither recognized them.

Villagers dig herbs—that’s one of their traditional “mountain goods.”

The two mountain runners knew every herb that grew in Wushan.

But Xu Yuan was certain these herbs could treat certain ailments of the Ju Crow.

Xu Yuan told the two mountain runners to memorize the herb’s appearance—should they find it later, don’t sell it to others; keep it all for him.

Bai Lao Yan and Gao Guanzi naturally obeyed.

But Bai Lao Yan added, “I’ve lived in these mountains for decades—I’ve never seen this herb before. It’s probably extremely rare here.”

Xu Yuan’s mind stirred: Why would it be rare?

Could it be that the Ju Crow knew this herb was its enemy, and secretly destroyed it?

…

In the evening, Qiu Ningtai’s four subordinates passed by the river, carrying a bamboo basket, heading toward Pig Squeal Rock.

They didn’t notice the hut between the giant boulders by the river.

Xu Yuan’s trio naturally didn’t emerge.

Xu Yuan had obtained the true seed—he had no desire to stir up trouble.

The battle between Qiu Ningtai and the Ju Crow was none of his business—he wouldn’t meddle.

When those four returned, Xu Yuan suddenly remembered another question:

Qi Yue carried a permit.

Tian Jing said a new buyer had arrived on Guanghuo Street.

It was almost certainly Qi Yue—but what did he buy? Xu Yuan hadn’t found anything unusual on him.

“Ask Jiao tonight.”

After dinner, night fell quickly.

Xu Yuan put on his clay mask and told the two, “I’m going out. Wait here for me.”

“Alright.”

They had no intention of following.

They now had a very clear understanding of Master Xu’s strength.

If Master Xu couldn’t handle an evil, their presence would be useless.

They might even become his burden.

Xu Yuan crawled out of the hut and walked slowly to Guofeng Ridge alone.

He waited an hour.

Several evils passed by nearby.

Fortunately, none were strong—three even tried to invite this “kindred spirit” to join them.

Xu Yuan bared his teeth and drove them all off.

Jiao’s massive body slithered through the mountains.

All lesser evils fled in terror.

This time, Jiao came with Tian Jing.

Jiao spoke immediately: “I’ve learned the whereabouts of Ghost Beard Wood. The buyer on the street is also searching for it—and one of his men can track its trail…”

Xu Yuan cut in bluntly: “I’ve already found it.”

“Uh…” Jiao didn’t know what to say.

After finally digging up news about Guixumu, I rushed here like presenting a treasure to Master Xu.

But someone else got there first and found Guixumu directly.

Xu Yuan waved his hand and asked again: “What did Qi Yue want to buy on Guanghuo Street?”

Jiao’s eyes darted—he hadn’t mentioned the buyer’s name just now.

Hmm, this Qi Yue must already be in the Master’s hands.

Jiao didn’t ask further and answered honestly: “He wants to buy an inch of that one’s tendon.”

Xu Yuan blinked: “What?”

“You heard right—he wants… an inch of that one’s tendon.” Jiao repeated, then lowered his voice: “Qi Yue came with a mission; he wouldn’t act without purpose. That means… that one’s state of existence is likely bodily.”

Xu Yuan was deeply startled.

After a long moment, he said: “If someone is scheming against Him, how could that one allow Qi Yue—or anyone—to walk out of Guanghuo Street?”

Jiao smiled.

“The price offered was extremely high—it did not dishonor that one.”

Jiao sighed regretfully: “We thought when Qi Yue arrived, every household could profit—we heard from the great evils on Guanghuo Street that Qi Yue’s backers were obscenely rich.

On previous visits, everyone made a fortune.

But this time, his goal was clear: he wanted only that one thing.

Though the price was high, that one would never sell it. So he left Guanghuo Street and went searching for Guixumu.”

Xu Yuan frowned: “What use is this inch of tendon?”

“I knew you’d be interested, so I looked into it ahead of time,” Jiao said. “It’s incredibly precious, but its uses are extremely narrow.

The great evils on Guanghuo Street know of two uses: one, for a Wu Xiu to ascend to the top tier.

The second… is the completion of the Dragon Transformation Art!”

Xu Yuan fell silent for a long time.

Dragon Transformation Art!

Is someone in the Southern Capital about to complete it?

It must be top-tier level.

But among the people, there’s always a saying: True Dragon, Son of Heaven.

One True Dragon in the Southern Capital, one Son of Heaven in the Northern Capital.

Can they coexist?

Xu Yuan exhaled a heavy, troubled breath.

Jiao observed his expression and comforted him: “Master, don’t worry. In this world, evils of that one’s caliber are as rare as phoenix feathers.

And only those with a physical body possess an inch of tendon.

That makes the number even smaller.

If that one refuses to sell, the others certainly won’t either.”

Xu Yuan nodded—it made sense.

If it were merely a top-tier Wu Xiu, it might be manageable. But if it were true completion of the Dragon Transformation Art, the hidden danger was far too great.

Xu Yuan suddenly thought of another question: If completion of the Dragon Transformation Art requires an inch of tendon, why not seek the River Dragon King?

The River Dragon King’s level is higher.

And the Dragon Transformation Art was passed down by Him…

Could it be that the seeker only seeks top-tier Wu Xiu status, not full Dragon Transformation Art completion?

Or—does the River Dragon King not wish for a “True Dragon” to appear?

At least not now.

Xu Yuan shook his head—these matters were still too distant from him.

“Qi Yue failed this time; he won’t give up. Someone else may come to Guiwu Mountain later. Keep watch.”

“We will.”

“I’m leaving the mountain tomorrow. If you need any goods, have Bai Lao notify me anytime.”

Jiao nodded: “Understood.”

The folding note was already filled with one page—it has limited capacity and is only for emergencies.

After discussing these matters, Xu Yuan returned.

Jiao and Tian Jing returned together to Guanghuo Street.

Tian Jing still put on a show before Master Xu, but now that they were alone, he revealed some of his evil nature.

Jiao watched, pained, and sighed softly.

Tian Jing didn’t care: “Don’t worry about me. This form is actually fine now. Before, those fellows on Guanghuo Street were suspicious of me—but now they won’t be…”

As they spoke, the man and the dragon suddenly stopped.

Both looked up toward the left slope.

A tangle of roots suddenly burst from the soil.

Then it flailed wildly, like a headless fly.

It crashed into a large tree, yanked it out without hesitation, stripped off its roots, and grafted the trunk onto itself.

But whenever it attached a tree trunk, the wood soon withered completely.

Guixu had pulled out seven large trees—none suited it…

On nights like this, the mountain’s yin energy was thick.

Guixu grew frantic.

Tian Jing’s eyes gleamed.

“I’ve been worrying about how hard it is to move in this form!”

“This treasure is meant for me!”

Jiao was about to stop him—but Tian Jing had already lunged forward like a beast, all limbs flailing.

He leapt into the air, planting his legs firmly into Guixu’s roots.

Guixu trembled.

Then—whether Guixu’s roots merged into Tian Jing’s legs, or Tian Jing’s flesh enveloped Guixu—

They fused smoothly and perfectly!

Tian Jing’s eyes flashed layer upon layer of purple-black light; his body hair grew wild and tangled like roots.

He seemed to lose control, on the verge of becoming a full evil.

But then his hair stopped growing, slowly retracting.

His eyes gradually cleared.

He controlled Guixu, swiftly descending the slope, and smiled at Jiao: “Almost lost control.”

Jiao couldn’t smile—he wore a grim face and shook his head in sorrow.

Xu Yuan still didn’t know of this change—if he did, he’d likely feel conflicted: was this Tian Jing’s stroke of fortune… or his doom?

…

The next morning, Xu Yuan woke and flipped through the almanac.

Today’s prohibitions: visiting friends, sword dancing, chanting, shouting in the mountains.

Not a good day.

Dan Xiu, Wu Xiu, and Wen Xiu would all be affected.

Xu Yuan was eager to return.

“We leave today!”

But he saw Qiu Ningtai and his men heading toward Pig Squeal Rock.

His men pleaded: “Master, why go yourself? We’ll fetch the thing for you.”

Qiu Ningtai shook his head: “I’m telling you not to come. There’s only one piece of blood cake. Even if I can’t cure this illness, at least I’ll save my own life.

If you all come and catch the sickness, how will we split one piece?”

His men said: “Hua Lingzi is an evil too—how can we trust her? What if the blood cake doesn’t cure Ju Ya’s illness? Master, don’t go—leave it to us…”

They spoke as they walked away.

Xu Yuan nodded inwardly—Qiu Ningtai treated his men well, which explained their loyalty.

Once they were gone, Xu Yuan stepped out of the hut: “Let’s go quickly.”

We must hurry—don’t run into Qiu Ningtai on his way back.

My medicine cured Ju Ya’s illness yesterday—but it may not work today.

Ju Ya’s condition clearly worsens daily.

Coming to Guiwu Mountain to seek the True Seed was long planned, yet every matter has delayed us.

Xu Yuan felt a bad omen.

So he avoided any related troubles whenever possible.

The two mountain runners hurried after him.

Master Xu had stepped onto Fire Wheels!

The two mountain runners had to summon their full strength to catch up with him.

Several hours later, the three returned to Gao Family Village.

Gao Guanzi warmly invited Master Xu to rest inside the village, but Xu Yuan refused without hesitation.

The same thing happened when they passed through Wang Xiang Village.

That day, Xu Yuan emerged from Ghost Witch Mountain.

……

When Qiu Ningtai’s group reached Pig Scream Rock, his subordinates, seeing their earnest pleas were useless, exchanged glances and then knelt together, clutching his legs tightly.

Then one man rushed down at the risk of his life, placing the small beast covered in pustules into a bamboo basket.

Unsurprisingly, he fell ill too.

Qiu Ningtai angrily drove away the others and treated the sick man himself.

Qiu Ningtai had methods to isolate illness.

He and several other subordinates remained healthy.

But by evening, he had failed to cure the afflicted man.

In the end, he could only feed the man blood cake—this meant he had lost to the Ju Crow.

After eating the blood cake, the subordinate indeed recovered greatly.

But at night, all of them suddenly broke out in red sores and suffered unrelenting fevers!

At the same moment, all vegetation along their route back from Pig Scream Rock to camp withered and died simultaneously.

(End of Chapter)