Chapter 356: Changes in the Zang-Fu Organs

"Hmm?"

In the shadow, Ying Xin startled, then quickly calmed, his cold sneer carrying a trace of wariness:

"You're on the verge of death, yet your perception remains so sharp; no wonder you were once fifth on the Heroes List. If not for the Prince's blade, you might well have broken through to Tiangang by now!"

A gentle breeze, Xu Xu, blew into the temple. Long Xi Xiang sized up the figure in the shadow, seeming both solid and illusory:

"I heard all Long Yingwei die as ghosts beneath Wan Wan Zhuliu's blade. I wonder, who were you in life? Oh, you probably can't remember. Pity, pity."

"Hmph!"

Ying Xin sneered coldly: "How many more years can you endure? There is a place for you among the Long Yingwei. I'd like to see whether you'll remember who you are by then!"

"Is that so?"

Long Xi Xiang smiled and asked:

"The Long Yingwei rarely mobilize. You risked sneaking in today—was it to see this old man, or to save that Yan Yan Chunyang?"

In the shadow, Ying Xin's eyes flickered, vaguely sensing something amiss:

"Rumors in the Jianghu say your soul is damaged and you've become forgetful. Now it seems those rumors are indeed false..."

"Rumors, naturally, are a mix of truth and falsehood."

Long Xi Xiang paid it no mind and continued asking: "You still haven't answered this old man."

"What are you, that you deserve to ask me?"

Ying Xin gave a cold snort; without any visible movement, he vanished from the spot.

Born from the Fumo Long Ying, even with Ranshi Sect masters lying in ambush beneath this night sky, he could retreat calmly.

'What exactly does the Prince want me to see?'

In the night, Ying Xin drifted away. He looked back; inside the small temple, Long Xi Xiang sat cross-legged, gazing calmly, with not the slightest sign of moving to strike.

Clearly, he knew he could not take him down.

"Long Xi Xiang..."

Ying Xin frowned inwardly and was about to go search for Yan Yan Chunyang.

Hum~

Suddenly, he heard a wisp of wind.

"~Hmm?!"

The wind sound was extremely faint, yet Ying Xin was suddenly startled, the unease in his heart exploding all at once.

"Aaaah!"

As if a dragon's cry came from the horizon.

Without thinking, Ying Xin retreated violently, only to find the surrounding night instantly vanished. No, not vanished, but covered by Ling Yi Zhong world!

"What is this?!"

Ying Xin's face changed abruptly. He saw the sky before him suddenly blaze with light; within the sea of clouds, a azure dragon soared, and between the earth and mountains, a giant elephant let out a long roar.

"You?!"

Ying Xin cried out in horror.

In the next instant, the surroundings flashed away. He felt the light and shadow before his eyes shift; when he opened his eyes again, his vision held only the faint smile on Long Xi Xiang's face.

He remained unmoved in his original spot, while he himself stood within the palm of that hand.

"You, you actually broke through Tiangang!"

Earthly Immortal!

Horror surged in Ying Xin's heart, mixed with disbelief: "You, you pulled out the Prince's blade intent?!"

To him, the latter was far more terrifying than Long Xi Xiang advancing and breaking through Tiangang, ascending to Earthly Immortal; this meant someone had shaken his own Prince within the same realm!

"Who is it?!"

At this moment, Ying Xin finally understood the purpose for which his Prince had sent him here.

"Pfft!"

Long Xi Xiang closed his palm, crushing that wisp of shadow. The Long Yingwei, attached to the Fumo Long Shen Xiang, were not truly human; naturally, there was no question of torture or interrogation.

"It seems, after the blade intent was removed, Wan Wan Zhuliu did sense something, but only slightly; thus, he sent the Long Yingwei to probe."

Although he didn't extract much from this Long Yingwei, Long Xi Xiang still guessed something. He casually shook the dissipating mist into nothingness, then rose to his full height.

He glanced at the small courtyard opposite, then vanished into the temple.

"Long Xiang Jin Gang Tian!"

The fluctuation within the small temple flashed away; inside the opposite courtyard, the little tiger cub

still sensed it keenly.

Breaking through Tiangang; only at the Divine Realm can one initially touch the mortal world. With every gesture, wondrous scenes follow, like changes in heavenly phenomena; this is the origin of the title Earthly Immortal.

"Over forty years of bitter endurance; his foundation is now sufficient..."

The little tiger cub shrank its body. In her current state, if she were truly discovered, there would be no place to hide.

Long Xi Xiang's strike deeply moved her; she had already made up her mind: once that boy returns, she would immediately urge him to remove the blade intent, no matter the cost; she would not care anymore.

She looked toward San Yuan Wai, somewhat anxious:

"Why hasn't he returned yet?"

Splash splash~

True Qi flowed like water into the zang-fu organs.

While refining the zang-fu, Li Yuan finally felt the benefit of true Qi being full; the tempering of the zang-fu is not by stimulating with force, but by repeatedly flushing and cleansing.

Like a long river rolling, washing over stones that tumble down from the mountain, slowly grinding away their sharp edges until they become smooth pebbles.

This is a long, patient process; one must control the true Qi so it does not damage the zang-fu, and it requires a long time, continuous flushing and cleansing.

The more abundant and pure the true qi, the faster the refinement speed.

"The Nine Refinements of Yang Jian Tian Yi are truly a divine technique!"

Li Yuan felt the benefits.

He had only completed the first refinement, yet his true qi was already twice as abundant as before and far more pure; the benefit for refining the viscera was immense.

Under the support of the Long Hu Longhu Dadan's medicinal power, this speed climbed further, and it was a massive climb.

"At most three months, and refining the viscera will be fully accomplished, followed by refining the marrow! The medicinal power of the Long Hu Longhu Dadan will likely still remain in abundance after refining the marrow..."

This was extremely astonishing.

Li Yuan calculated in his heart and could not help but feel shaken.

Normally, progressing from unblocking the meridians to refining the viscera requires at least half a supreme art to transform internal qi into true qi; after passing this hurdle, another eleven or twelve years are needed to fully accomplish refining the viscera.

Then, to fully accomplish refining the marrow, another eleven or twelve years are required.

This assumes no shortage of medicinal herbs and pills; without sufficient and stable supply, the required time could even double!

For someone of Master Master Gongyang Yu's talent and status, from cultivating blood and qi to refining the marrow, it took a full Shi Shi Zuzu of a century, during which the amount of medicinal herbs and pills consumed was simply incalculable.

This single Long Hu Longhu Dadan is enough to equal the pills he used over a century!

"No wonder the Long Hu Longhu Dadan never leaves the sect; even someone of Old Dragon Head's status only receives one every fifteen years. This is a supreme treasure!"

Only now did Li Yuan truly understand the value of the Long Hu Longhu Dadan, and he could not help but feel somewhat fortunate.

If he had chosen not to stand out but to lie low and cultivate silently within the inner and outer sects, then obtaining this single Long Hu Longhu Dadan would have been almost impossible.

"The treatment and circumstances of a genius are truly worlds apart from those of ordinary disciples."

As this thought crossed his mind, Li Yuan's body shuddered; his viscera moved, emitting the sound of Jin Yu colliding. This was the sign that he had already entered the stage of refining the viscera.

"Thump! ~"

"Thump~"

In his ears, there was a low, powerful heartbeat and the sound of Jin Yu colliding as his organs vibrated. In the instant he entered the stage of refining the viscera, Li Yuan felt as though all his organs had cast off a Yi Yang Jian Chen Zhong of heavy iron, appearing much lighter and more agile than before.

"The speed of digesting the medicinal power has increased by at least thirty percent!"

As his viscera moved, the medicinal power of the Long Hu Longhu Dadan was digested at high speed, and the true qi throughout his body quickly ran dry; Li Yuan felt exhilarated.

The better the digestion, the stronger the physique, the better the spirit, and the faster the martial arts training speed. The benefits of refining the viscera are not immediately apparent, yet they affect every aspect.

"Hah!"

Li Yuan exhaled a long breath and opened his eyes, only to see Nie Xianshan's old face.

"Swish!"

Nie Xianshan stepped back, nodded as if nothing had happened:

"Refining the viscera has been accomplished. Not bad. This Long Hu Longhu Dadan was not wasted."

"Junior Uncle Nie."

Li Yuan rose to pay his respects; his viscera were powerful, his spirit was revitalized, and his blood and qi were excellent.

"Vigorous and rising."

Nie Xianshan stroked his long beard, feeling somewhat emotional.

Once upon a time, he too was as vigorous as Li Yuan, progressing through all the realms, but in a flash, fifty or sixty years had passed.

"Regarding refining the viscera, your junior uncle Nie possesses a secret technique. If you are willing, you may ask him for instruction."

On the ox-shaped stone by the stream, Long Yingchan sat cross-legged.

"If you are willing, come to the Jingtao Hall to find me."

At this moment, Nie Xianshan naturally had none of the murderous aura from the daytime; he stroked his long beard with a gentle expression.

"Thank you, Junior Uncle Nie."

Li Yuan cupped his hands to express thanks and was about to ask what that secret technique was when he was frightened by a single sentence from Nie Xianshan:

"Come to think of it, Junior Nephew Li is already twenty-four; it is time to consider matters of marriage."

"?!""

Li Yuan instantly thought of the Jingtao Hall Master, Nie Ying, in a Taoist robe, heroic and spirited, but she was already over seventy years old...

"You cow-nose, what are you doing?!"

Before Li Yuan could even reply, Long Xi Xiang's angry shout exploded; the sound arrived first, the person followed later.

".....:"

Nie Xianshan coughed lightly: "My Longhu Temple does not forbid marriage. As a sect elder, caring for the disciples under my charge, what is wrong with that?"

"Nonsense!"

Long Xi Xiang was somewhat angry: "At his age, he is in a time of rapid progress; what is there to talk about marriage?"

"What, do you want to learn from you, over a hundred years old, sitting in a small temple all day?"

"You!"

"You what you?"

Nie Xianshan was not afraid at all; the anger Long Xi Xiang had boasted about all day suddenly erupted: "Do not think that because you broke the Heavenly Gang, I, the poor Daoist, fear you!"

"Come, come, come, let this old man show you what a Land Immortal is!"

Long Xi Xiang rubbed his fists; he had been holding it in for over forty years and was simply impatient.

"Enough!"

Seeing the two about to fight, Li Yuan could only silently step back; it was Long Yingchan who shouted loudly and stopped them.

He felt quite helpless on his face: "People who together are nearly three hundred years old, are you not afraid of the disciples laughing at you?"

After glancing at Li Yuan, the two snorted coldly but also dispersed their auras.

After stopping the two, Long Yingchan finally looked at Li Yuan and said:

"Refining the viscera without interruption is fine, but there's no need to rush. If you damage the internal organs, you'll have wasted the medicinal power of the Dragon Tiger Great Pill for nothing."

"This disciple understands."

Li Yuan knew this was a dismissal. He bowed, replied, and was about to withdraw.

"Listening won't hurt."

Long Xi Xiang spoke up at this moment, calling Li Yuan to stay.

"Mm."

Nie Xianshan had no objections either. He casually pulled a booklet from his bosom and tossed it to Long Long Yingchan:

"This is the record from before and after Brother Zhongli Wang Luan entered the city. After entering, he ran into the former government office runner Liu San. Given his temperament, there should be no one else behind him."

Long Long Yingchan flipped through it casually, then handed it to Long Xi Xiang. The latter had no interest in it and casually gave it to Li Yuan.

Li Yuan flipped through it. The records above were very concise, yet fairly detailed—when Brother Zhongli Wang Luan entered the city, which road he took, what happened before and after his entry, all were recorded.

Among them, he also saw himself. It said that when Brother Zhongli Wang Luan took Brother Brother Sikong, the latter was rescued by a mysterious person. This person had extremely high lightness skill, did not reveal true Gang, and should be a renowned expert of the jianghu.

"Tch, a renowned expert."

Li Li Daoye's evaluation of himself by Dragon Chant Hall was very much approved.

"There have been multiple cases of women being raped and murdered in the city, most in the east of the city where the Dao government office is located. Dragon Chant Hall has sent people to investigate several times and even caught a few people. Now it seems, someone really is sheltering 【the culprit】."

Nie Xianshan said in a heavy voice.

"Was any evidence found?"

Long Long Yingchan asked.

"All traces of qi were cleaned up. In less than half a day, dozens of people in the town Wutang died—those who knew about it should all have been silenced."

Nie Xianshan's eyes grew slightly cold:

"That Ding Xiu is also a tough nut. I nearly flayed him alive, yet he still wouldn't leak a single word."

"If it really is Yan Yan Chunyang, even if he died, he wouldn't dare speak."

Long Long Yingchan wasn't surprised either. The Dao government office and town Wutang were originally experts at catching criminals and arresting people. If they truly wanted to cover things up, they naturally wouldn't leave traces.

The two went back and forth, discussing.

Master and disciple Li Yuan listened silently on the side.

"What about Zhu Zhu Zhongying and Ouyang Ying?"

"Also bound."

Good lord, the Zhenfu can just arrest whoever they want?

Li Yuan's eyelid twitched. In terms of status, a Dao Zhenfu was much higher than Ding Xiu.

"Once caught, that's enough. With the Nourishing Life Furnace here, whether they talk or not doesn't matter much."

Long Long Yingchan stood up:

"Keep them detained for now, wait for the imperial court to send someone!"

Whoo whoo~

Gang wind howled.

The Dun Tian Zhou tore through the sea of clouds like a meteor.

On the deck, Wan Wan Zhuliu leaned against the railing and gazed into the distance, looking down at the sea of clouds and the boundless ocean below.

"It's been this long, still no gains."

A middle-aged man clad in black armor was also gazing down at the East Sea, his brow slightly furrowed: "Your Highness, that old turtle is probably no longer in the East Sea."

His name was Wang Jin, Commander of the Dayun Imperial Guards. The Dun Tian Zhou was usually controlled and nurtured by him.

"Keep looking."

Wan Wan Zhuliu's gaze reflected the vast ocean.

"The East Sea is vast. That old turtle has the ability to shrink and expand at will. Finding it is no different than fishing for a needle in the ocean."

The middle-aged man sighed: "The Dun Tian Zhou consumes a single province's worth of incense and offerings for three years in a single day. We can't just keep searching aimlessly, can we?"

"Search for seven more days."

Wan Wan Zhuliu's brow suddenly furrowed. He vanished from the spot, and in the next instant, he was already in the study.

Clang clang clang~

In the study, ten thousand weapons trembled, emitting the sound of metal clashing, as if in fear and trembling.

"A Shadow Guard died."

Wan Wan Zhuliu's face was expressionless. After muttering to himself, he flicked his finger. A light chime was heard, and hundreds upon thousands of blades wailed and fell to the ground.

A wisp of black mist flowed from his fingertip, then spread out, shrouding the entire study.

"Roar~"

In the darkness, there seemed to be a dragon's cry.

After several breaths, a figure almost the same color as the darkness walked out, kneeling prostrate on the ground, trembling all over. It was precisely Ying Xin.

Fear gripped his heart:

"Your Highness, that Long Xi Xiang has already broken through Celestial Gang. Someone, someone pulled out the blade intent you left on his body......"

"Mm."

Wan Wan Zhuliu didn't care. He had sent Ying Xin there merely to verify.

"Dragon Tiger Temple....."

Kneeling on the ground, Ying Xin didn't even dare to breathe heavily.

But Wan Wan Zhuliu didn't care. Instead, he raised his hand and grabbed the Demon-Subduing Dragon God Blade, gently stroking the blade edge. A wisp of black pattern rose, transforming into a curtain of light, within which a green steel pagoda could faintly be seen.

"Your Highness....."

Only then did Yingxin answer carefully:

"The Marquis... has been detained by Dragon Tiger Temple..."