Nalan Jie's Gift

The moment Cheng Zhou heard Nalan Chaoge's words, he suddenly understood. Then, his face drained of color as he hurried to Nalan Chaoge's side.

"Young Master, are you all right? How could you take such a risk? If that punch had hurt you..."

Cheng Zhou's face instantly turned deathly pale.

"It's fine, it's fine. Good thing you held back, or that hit might really have crippled me!"

Guo'er hurried over as well and held Nalan Chaoge in her arms with concern.

"Brother Cheng, honestly! What would we have done if you had hurt the young master?"

"Yes, yes, it was my fault. It was my fault!"

"All right, all right, aren't I fine?" Nalan Chaoge said with a smile.

Because the Eight Inner Gates unleashed the body's limits, however much power it released, the body would inevitably suffer an equal degree of damage. No matter how strong the body was trained to become, one could only reduce that damage as much as possible, never eliminate it entirely.

Nalan Chaoge suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

The damage had not been so obvious when he killed Mu Lu, but after opening the Eight Inner Gates again as a Dou Zhe, the power he had overdrawn had already exceeded what his body could endure.

After forcibly taking Cheng Zhou's heavy blow as well, Nalan Chaoge felt a metallic sweetness rise in his throat.

"Young Master! Young Master, are you all right..."

In the distance, Nalan Jie moved. With a whoosh, a pair of enormous wings formed from Dou Qi spread from his back.

In the blink of an eye, he flew over from afar.

"You can continue your training. Chaoge used a secret technique, which caused some damage to his body. He'll be fine after resting for a while," Nalan Jie said softly.

"Old Master, it was all because of me..." Cheng Zhou was filled with self-reproach.

"This has nothing to do with you. You didn't use your full strength either. I know all that. You did well."

"Yes, Old Master!"

Nalan Jie helped Nalan Chaoge up and gently placed one hand against his back.

A stream of rich, powerful Dou Qi entered Nalan Chaoge's body.

Before long, Nalan Chaoge regained consciousness.

"Grandfather?"

"Don't speak. Listen to me. Although I don't know what secret technique you used to raise your strength, I need to tell you that Battle Skill of yours is extremely dangerous. While it can temporarily enhance your physical abilities, it seems to harm your body. Do not use it unless absolutely necessary!"

"Oh." Nalan Chaoge had felt it too.

"This is a Mid-level Xuan Tier Battle Skill, Raging Lion's Wrath. I became known as Marshal Lionheart because I rose to fame through this Battle Skill. Later, because I was on good terms with Xiao Lin, I also passed this Battle Skill on to the Xiao Family!"

"I'm giving you the original copy of this Battle Skill now. Study it well!"

Raging Lion's Wrath? The Xiao Family's top Battle Skill had actually been passed on by Grandfather?

That made sense. No wonder Nalan Jie was called Marshal Lionheart!

"Thank you, Grandfather!"

"All right, Xiao Ge. On the Dou Qi Continent, fortune and danger coexist. Only strength gives one hope of surviving. Grandfather won't always be by your side in the future. Learn to protect yourself, and learn to protect what you wish to protect!"

Seeing Nalan Jie's solemn expression, Nalan Chaoge's heart stirred.

"Grandfather, are you leaving?"

"Yes. There have been disturbances at the border. The Cloud Empire and the Falling Goose Empire have been interacting frequently, and border raids are becoming more frequent as well. I need to go keep watch," Nalan Jie said, heavily patting Nalan Chaoge's shoulder. "You're still too weak. Grow stronger quickly!"

With that, Nalan Jie turned and walked into the distance.

After taking two steps, Nalan Jie seemed to remember something. He turned back and took another item from his Na Ring.

"This is a dragon tendon removed from a Fifth-order Magical Beast, the Fiery Poison Seal Python. Though it isn't a true dragon tendon, it is still exceedingly rare. I had someone forge it into a whip, so I'll give it to you today as well. While I'm away, you must train diligently. If you have any problems, discuss them with Elder Mu!"

After saying that, Nalan Jie turned and strode away.

An Advanced Na Ring, a Mid-level Xuan Tier Battle Skill, and a divine whip forged from the tendon of a Fifth-order Magical Beast.

A Fifth-order Magical Beast like the Fiery Poison Seal Python shouldn't have a dragon tendon. Could it have been not Fifth Rank, but Sixth Rank?

It was obvious that Nalan Jie had prepared these as gifts for his coming-of-age ceremony, yet he had given them all to him at once. Was the border truly that dangerous? Or had he sensed some ill omen?

With the border in crisis, Nalan Jie departed for the frontier that very night.

The moon shone bright amid sparse stars, and Nalan Chaoge lay in bed, unable to sleep.

He had killed Mu Lu, and now the border was in crisis. No matter what, he could not go out alone. The Mu Family had likely been watching him for some time.

He wasn't afraid of them using underhanded tactics. He was afraid of them coming at him openly. Mu Lu had an older brother, Mu Tie, who was said to be a Five-star Dou Ling. Above him was Mu Tong, a Two-star Dou Shi. If the Mu Family wanted to make a move against him, it could only be Mu Tong.

Strength was what mattered most!

Although he had the Battle Skill Raging Lion's Wrath, Nalan Chaoge had no plans to cultivate it. Instead, he had taken a liking to this whip.

Nalan Jie had not told Nalan Chaoge any of its wondrous uses, so Nalan Chaoge would have to explore all of its mystical functions himself.

The Eight Inner Gates was a good thing. It did not demand much Dou Qi. If he could offset the backlash of opening all eight gates, this technique would absolutely be at the level of an immortal art.

What if he trained his physical body until it became incomparably tough?

One force could overcome ten techniques. That was true. You could punch someone else ten times without consequence, but if they punched you once, you would go down.

But what if someone could punch you ten times and nothing happened?

Taking a beating?

Nalan Chaoge jolted upright from the bed.

"What's wrong, Young Master? Did you have a nightmare?" Guo'er asked, opening her sleepy eyes when she heard the movement from the bed.

"Uh, it's nothing. I just had a dream." Nalan Chaoge did not wake Guo'er any further.

Dou Qi was the best way to temper the body. The stronger one's Dou Qi became, the stronger one's physical body would become as well.

Of course, if he wanted to speed things up, he would need the stimulation of external forces.

For example, taking a beating!

In many television dramas and movies, there was such a scene: the protagonist did not learn how to hit people, but how to take hits.

The next day.

Early morning.

As the rising sun emerged, a thin white mist drifted through the small mountain forest. Blown by the mountain wind, it lingered around the mountaintop for a long while without dispersing.

What a peaceful, tranquil morning in the Holy City.

"Are we really going to do this?" Guo'er asked doubtfully, holding the Fiery Poison Seal Whip Nalan Jie had given Nalan Chaoge.

"Yes, hit me. Hit me hard. Don't hold back!"

Nalan Chaoge stood bare-bodied, his whole