Marrow Cleansing Pill

"I crossed..."

Just as the words "crossed over" were about to leave his lips, the Marrow Cleansing Pearl trembled slightly. A streak of white light surged forth, traveling up through his meridians from below and straight into Yang Heng's mind.

A coolness washed over his mind, and Yang Heng instantly regained his senses.

This incense is poisoned. It can muddle a person's mind.

The smoke drifted into Yang Heng's nostrils again, but his head was no longer groggy. His mind was perfectly clear.

"That was close!" Yang Heng inwardly rejoiced.

Had the Marrow Cleansing Pearl not suddenly acted and awakened him in time, he would have exposed everything about himself.

If they learned that he had come from another world, they would surely drag him away to slice him up for research. By then, the secret of the Marrow Cleansing Pearl would not remain hidden either.

However...

The danger had not yet passed. He still had to answer Shopkeeper Chen's questions without letting him discover that he had already sobered up.

With his mind racing at breakneck speed, Yang Heng came up with a way to answer Shopkeeper Chen's questions.

He would play along with the scheme.

The smoke drifting from the incense burner could confuse a person's mind. Shopkeeper Chen must have known that long ago, and this was certainly not his first time doing such a thing.

In this state, every word he spoke would surely seem utterly genuine, without a single falsehood. Shopkeeper Chen would undoubtedly believe it and harbor no suspicion.

That way, his claim that a martial artist stood behind him would finally have its use.

Words that might originally have been riddled with holes would be difficult for him to question now.

"I met a mysterious man when I passed around a corner at the western end of the medicine shop. He said my father had shown him kindness in the past, and that he had come to repay me. He asked me what wish I had."

"I said I didn't want people to keep treating me like a fool. I wanted my body to grow strong quickly, so no one could bully me ever again."

"After that, he poured out a pill from a white jade bottle that gave off a chilly mist and handed it to me. He said that if I swallowed it, my wish would come true."

"So I swallowed the pill. The moment it entered my stomach, I passed out. In my daze, I heard that he would come back for me within three years. When I woke up, he was already gone."

"You know, that pill smelled really good. I still want another one." Yang Heng put on a blissful expression, drool streaming from the corner of his mouth.

Seeing Yang Heng act like such a fool, Shopkeeper Chen sighed. "A fool truly has a fool's fortune. Such a fine pill was actually swallowed by this stupid brat. Sigh..."

Shopkeeper Chen clutched his chest in anguish, then immediately pressed on. "Do you remember what color that pill was?"

"Hm? Color?!" Yang Heng furrowed his brows deeply, looking as though he were struggling with all his might to remember.

"Yes, what color was it?" Shopkeeper Chen showed no suspicion whatsoever and patiently guided Yang Heng toward an answer.

He knew well that under the influence of the mind-confusing incense, a person's head would become muddled. Recalling things took far more mental effort than usual, so they had to be guided along slowly.

After a while, Yang Heng answered:

"White. It lay in my palm, cold and cool."

"You're certain it was white, and it carried an icy chill?"

Shopkeeper Chen abruptly rose from his chair. His body swayed, and he appeared directly in front of Yang Heng. He seized Yang Heng's arm forcefully and urgently asked, his eyes brimming with excitement.

When Shopkeeper Chen's fat body suddenly appeared before him, Yang Heng was startled badly enough that he nearly gave himself away. Fortunately, he held it in.

Is this what a martial artist is?

His speed was actually this fast, like a ghost or phantom. I couldn't react at all.

"Ah!"

Shopkeeper Chen's fat hand looked utterly ordinary, yet its strength was astonishing. The arm he had grabbed hurt terribly, as though his fingers were caught in a pair of tiger-headed pincers.

Only after hearing Yang Heng's pained cry did Shopkeeper Chen notice that his right hand was gripping Yang Heng's arm. He hurriedly let go and continued questioning him.

"It was definitely white and cold. I won't remember it wrong." Yang Heng raised his head and answered firmly.

"White, icy cold, stored in a white jade bottle giving off a chill... It could enlighten the mind and strengthen the body. Could it be the legendary Marrow Cleansing Pill?!"

Shopkeeper Chen went blank and muttered to himself.

"Marrow Cleansing Pill—it must be the Marrow Cleansing Pill!"

"No other pill has such tremendous effects. Why didn't I obtain that pill? Why?"

Shopkeeper Chen looked as though he had gone mad. He stared coldly at Yang Heng, wishing he could swallow him alive and tear him apart.

If it had been the day Yang Heng first swallowed the pill, he absolutely would have done so. But now, it was too late.

"Sigh, a fool truly has a fool's fortune."

Shopkeeper Chen shook his head and sighed again.

He had originally thought Yang Heng had stumbled upon some treasure. Who would have expected it to be a mysterious martial artist repaying a debt of gratitude?

That martial artist's strength and realm had to be extraordinary. He could even produce a rare pill like the Marrow Cleansing Pill and give it to a fool without the slightest regret. That alone spoke volumes.

The Marrow Cleansing Pill was the pill that Body Tempering Realm martial artists dreamed of and yearned for above all else. Its effects differed from ordinary pills that solidified the body, nourished vitality, and increased cultivation.

Its foremost effect was Marrow Cleansing and Bone Scouring, enhancing a martial artist's talent for cultivation.

It was hailed as the number one divine pill of the Body Tempering Realm.

Every person's cultivation talent was innate, yet the Marrow Cleansing Pill could improve that talent after birth. One could only imagine how precious it was.

If someone of dull aptitude consumed a Marrow Cleansing Pill, his talent would immediately change, allowing him to rival those with middling or even superior cultivation talent.

If a martial artist with even a little talent took the pill, the results would be even more extraordinary. Once its medicinal effects were fully absorbed by the body, he could be called a martial arts genius.

The bottlenecks in his martial arts would be broken. The Martial Path ahead might not be smooth sailing, but he would travel it faster, more easily, and farther than before.

Though this pill was excellent, a person could only take one in a lifetime. Taking another would have no effect, and it had to be consumed while one was still in the Body Tempering Realm.

After breaking through the Body Tempering Realm, taking this pill would greatly weaken its effects. It would no longer improve one's talent.

Thinking of a divine pill being wasted on a fool, Shopkeeper Chen beat his chest and stamped his feet, his heart aching beyond measure.

Sigh...

After a while, Shopkeeper Chen gathered his emotions and calmed down, considering how to deal with Yang Heng.

His previous plan had been to seize the fortunate encounter Yang Heng had obtained, then kill him and be done with it.

But now, Yang Heng had already consumed the fortunate encounter. Moreover, a mysterious and powerful martial artist stood behind him. Killing him was out of the question. He could only pretend none of this had happened and leave everything as it was.

In any case, Yang Heng had inhaled the mind-confusing incense. Once he woke up, he would not remember what had just happened. A few casual lies would smooth it over.

As for teaching him martial arts and taking him as a disciple, Shopkeeper Chen had originally considered it. He thought that since Yang Heng had taken a Marrow Cleansing Pill, his cultivation talent ought to be decent.

But after feeling his bones, his desire to accept him as a disciple gradually faded.

Even after consuming the incomparably precious Marrow Cleansing Pill, he still only had inferior bone structure. His talent was poor, unworthy of cultivation, and he would achieve nothing in martial arts in the future.

And this was the result after taking the Marrow Cleansing Pill.

If he had never taken it, he was probably completely devoid of any talent for cultivation.

He truly was trash—a fool!

Having discovered this result, Shopkeeper Chen was so angry that rage rose within him. He was filled with resentment toward Yang Heng.

If Yang Heng had possessed decent cultivation talent after taking the Marrow Cleansing Pill, Shopkeeper Chen could at least have trained him and unearthed a promising seedling for the medicine shop, earning some credit in the process.

But...

He was too furious to speak. In the past several years, he had never encountered anything as vexing as this.

What a flower stuck in a pile of cow dung.

He did not want to see Yang Heng anymore.

He opened the window, and the drugged smoke was scattered by the wind.

Before long, Yang Heng "woke up." His face was blank with confusion, utterly unaware of what had happened, and he stared vacantly ahead.