[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-immortal-path-among-the-stars":3,"chapter-the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-chapter-348":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Immortal Path Among the Stars",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2320280,4537,"Chapter 348","the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-chapter-348",348,"\u003Cp>The python appeared imposing, its body surging with chaotic demonic energy, but upon closer inspection, one could detect faint traces of decay within its aura; its eyes were unusually cloudy, and the scales on its head dull and lifeless—clearly, its lifespan was also nearing its end.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Senior Brother, what exactly is going on here?” Wang Yu took a deep breath, vaguely sensing something, and asked the old man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Younger Brother Wang, is Xiao Bai with you? Could you let me see it?” Li Shu did not answer the question, but asked calmly instead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course I have Xiao Bai with me, but Senior Brother should first explain what’s happening before us.” Wang Yu replied thoughtfully.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Aren’t you already aware of everything you should know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These snakes, grown from Xiao Bai’s essence blood, have all awakened an incredible special talent: each can rapidly cultivate and break through barriers in an extremely short time, at the cost of exhausting their limited lifespans.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course, before this, I tried with other spiritual beasts, but discovered Xiao Bai’s essence blood only works on serpent-type demonic beasts—even crocodilian demonic beasts are ineffective. So I’m also curious: what realm is Xiao Bai, the source, currently in? This is closely tied to the deal I wish to make with you.” Li Shu looked at Wang Yu, his expression serious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Exchange lifespan for cultivation? Could such a bizarre talent truly exist? Understood—I’ll let Senior Brother Li see Xiao Bai.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Wang Yu had anticipated this, he still drew a sharp breath at the words, his face betraying shock; yet after swiftly considering several options, he slapped his spiritual beast pouch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A gust of cold wind surged from the pouch, and on the ground before them appeared a slender spiritual beast, entirely snow-white, barely three feet long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This creature bore short white horns on its head, a neck far longer and thinner than a normal demonic crocodile, its body covered in translucent white scales; were it not for its still somewhat stubby limbs and abdomen, and the visible fangs in its mouth, it might have resembled an elegant, single-horned white lizard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This beast was none other than Xiao Bai.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Bai curled its body on the ground, as if it had been sleeping inside the pouch, suddenly teleported out—now dazed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It blinked its eyes, shook its neck, and rose to its feet, then exhaled two streams of white mist from its nostrils, clearly expressing its displeasure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment these two streams of white mist emerged, they transformed into a vast expanse of freezing cold air spreading in all directions, instantly coating the nearby ground in a thick layer of frost, while its Qi Condensation peak aura was laid bare.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In just a few short years, this mutated Iron-Headed Crocodile had once again surged forward in power, breaking through another minor realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The white giant python inside the iron cage, which had just regained a fraction of its strength, instantly recoiled upon sensing Xiao Bai’s exhalation, curling up tightly and burying its head beneath its body, trembling as if confronted by its mortal enemy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Its body has changed greatly—now more dragon-like.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yet it’s still only Qi Condensation peak—slower than I expected for a second-rank beast.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But its demonic aura is so dense, a breakthrough to second rank can’t be far off.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Also, there seems to be no sign of lifespan depletion.” Li Shu’s eyes lit up the moment Xiao Bai appeared; he hurried over, muttering incessantly, releasing his spiritual sense to scan Xiao Bai’s body, even raising a hand as if to touch it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Bai froze for a moment, then its eyes flashed with anger; ignoring the fact that the old man’s aura felt vaguely familiar, it whipped its scaled tail and opened its mouth as if to spit something out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xiao Bai!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Yu barked sharply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Bai shuddered, closed its mouth in sullenness, spun around, leapt into the air, and landed on Wang Yu’s shoulder, lifting its head to survey its surroundings, ignoring Li Shu entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Senior Brother Li, are you saying Xiao Bai has also awakened this talent?” Wang Yu asked the old man gravely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Even the unranked snakes infused with Xiao Bai’s essence blood awakened this ability—do you think Xiao Bai, the source, wouldn’t have it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Moreover, this ability was clearly triggered by that sliver of fourth-rank dragon essence blood. Originally, both you and I thought Xiao Bai had merely awakened its ice-cold power; none of us imagined it had secretly awakened this bizarre talent.” Li Shu spoke slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Though Xiao Bai’s cultivation speed is indeed extraordinary, far surpassing other Iron-Headed Crocodiles, it hasn’t been as extreme as this serpent—breaking from unranked to Qi Condensation late stage in just a year and a half?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And Senior Brother yourself said you found no signs of lifespan depletion in Xiao Bai.” Wang Yu glanced at the white spiritual beast on his shoulder, still skeptical.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s because your spiritual beast’s talent hasn’t been fully activated yet—it’s still in a dormant phase.” Li Shu replied without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What do you mean by that?” Wang Yu, upon hearing this, was truly baffled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Though this ability is too incredible—I’ve studied spiritual beasts for decades and never heard of anything like it—it still lacks one crucial step to be fully activated. For over a decade, I’ve devoted myself entirely to researching and perfecting this.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Younger Brother, first take a look at this.” Li Shu explained briefly, then pulled a pre-prepared white jade slip from his sleeve and handed it over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Yu accepted the jade slip in surprise, briefly scanned it with his spiritual sense, confirmed it had no seals, then gently placed it against his forehead and probed its contents with his consciousness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Gui Yuan Shu,” he exclaimed involuntarily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Correct—it’s the secret technique I created myself.” Li Shu replied proudly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Yu, startled and doubtful, quickly scanned the jade slip’s contents with his consciousness, then frowned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the jade slip contained only half of the Gui Yuan Shu incantation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This Gui Yuan Shu is the key to activating this talent—and it’s the bargaining chip I’m offering you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“To be honest, this technique could only be truly perfected thanks to the first demonic snake infused with Xiao Bai’s essence blood.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I originally only intended to conduct experiments on that snake, but accidentally discovered that Gui Yuan Shu could unlock its potential, allowing it to break through multiple realms in rapid succession—ultimately revealing the secret of Xiao Bai’s essence blood.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“With so many Qi Condensation late-stage test subjects now available, I spent over a decade constantly refining and modifying this technique, finally perfecting it into a unique beast-taming secret art.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If you obtain this technique, you can borrow a portion of your bonded spiritual beast’s spiritual power, and redirect negative backlash effects from your own cultivation onto the beast, giving you a decisive advantage in battle.” Li Shu smiled, but his gaze unconsciously flickered toward the white spiritual beast on Wang Yu’s shoulder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If Gui Yuan Shu has such profound effects, what deal are you proposing with me using this technique? Is it related to Xiao Bai?” Wang Yu pondered for a moment, then asked slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re truly perceptive, Younger Brother—I wish to trade for two-thirds of the essence blood within this spiritual beast.” Li Shu replied without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>",1216,"2026-06-20T15:44:32.161Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","cc0066bc9a1a376e46bf2e24ad40cfca3a4e9550da2e33977780bc7b1b49bba9","the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-chapter-349","the-immortal-path-among-the-stars-chapter-347",530,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-immortal-path-among-the-stars-cover.jpg"]