More than a month later,
Changqing County had finally calmed down. After the previous great battle, the county government had completely become the sole overlord of the area.
Not only had it taken over all the territory formerly controlled by the Black Tiger Gang and the Ten Thousand Blades Sect, but even the slightly larger gangs had failed to escape the fate of destruction.
It could be said that the county magistrate was now the local emperor of Changqing County, the kind whose single word decided life or death.
Although Bai Ze had heard half a month ago that no one was investigating the Innate Cultivation Method anymore, faced with such temptation, the county magistrate could not possibly give up so easily.
It was merely that the investigation had shifted from the open into the shadows.
People from Wolong Valley even appeared in Changqing County from time to time and had clashed with the county government several times. They were likely investigating the Innate Cultivation Method as well.
Yet no one knew that the Innate Cultivation Method they yearned for day and night was with Bai Ze.
At that moment, in Bai Ze's room, his blood and qi churned violently, and his entire body looked like a cooked shrimp.
Rumble!
At that moment, deafening thunder seemed to erupt from within Bai Ze's body as powerful blood and qi burst forth like an explosion.
His body gradually calmed, returning to its original state.
Bai Ze slowly opened his eyes. After sensing his body, he muttered, "So this is the Blood Changing Realm. Compared with before, my strength has increased by more than fivefold."
"According to the description in the Three Yang Qi Refining Art, I can now cultivate the method and break through into the Innate Realm."
"If this had happened before, I might have been unable to wait to cultivate the Innate Cultivation Method. But now, I'm not in any hurry."
After all, when he obtained the Three Yang Qi Refining Art, it contained not only cultivation methods, but also information on the divisions within the Innate Realm.
The reason the Blood Changing Realm was called blood changing was because one had to expel the impurities in one's blood from the body and replace it with fresh blood.
Although one could cultivate a method upon reaching the Blood Changing Realm, and break through into the Innate Realm after cultivating inner qi within the body,
the more blood one transformed in the Blood Changing Realm, the stronger one would be after breaking through.
That was precisely why Bai Ze planned to transform all the blood in his body as thoroughly as possible before making his breakthrough, making himself even more formidable.
Unfortunately, the Three Yang Qi Refining Art was incomplete and only contained the first five layers.
Thus, after breaking through the Inner Qi Realm and the True Qi Realm within the Innate Realm, he would need to find the later portions of the method, or obtain another Innate Cultivation Method.
Otherwise, breaking through into the final Gang Qi Realm of the Innate Realm would not be impossible, but the chances would be vanishingly small.
However, Bai Ze was in no rush. It was not as though he needed to cultivate inner qi and break through into the Innate Realm immediately.
This Three Yang Qi Refining Art was merely preparation made in advance. Perhaps he would encounter something more suitable in the future.
As the thought arose, a translucent system interface appeared before his eyes.
[Martial God System] [Host: Bai Ze] [Age: 15/73] [Talent: One in a Hundred (500/1000)] [Realm: Blood Changing Realm (2%)] [Cultivation Method: None] [Martial Skills: Star Point Swordplay Incomplete (First Three Swords: Great Accomplishment 9%, Fourth Sword: Lesser Accomplishment 19%) Sword Drawing Technique Profound Realm (21%), Lightning Step Profound Realm (13%), Concealment Art Profound Realm (5%), Mad Bull Body Tempering Fist Perfected (21%)...] [Talent Points: 7]
Over the nearly two months, Bai Ze had not merely broken through into the Blood Changing Realm. He had also cultivated all the martial skills obtained from the Black Tiger Gang's secret chamber last time.
With Bai Ze's talent, it had not been particularly difficult for him to cultivate some Postnatal Middle Grade and upper-grade martial skills to around Great Accomplishment.
It was precisely because of this that he had gained a large number of Talent Points, allowing his talent to rise to another level.
Otherwise, he would not have been able to break through into the Blood Changing Realm so quickly.
After sensing his own strength, Bai Ze swiftly drew his longsword and began practicing Star Point Swordplay in the courtyard.
First Sword, Lamplight Shine.
Second Sword, Starlight Beacon.
Third Sword, Sparks Set Prairie Ablaze.
When Bai Ze executed the Fourth Sword, Galaxy Brilliance, the longsword in his hand became several degrees faster, as though he were pushing speed to its absolute limit.
The sword shadows around him also became even more unpredictable, making them difficult to guard against.
Yet it still felt as if something was missing, as though he could not unleash this sword's true power.
Perhaps it was because he lacked inner qi. Even so, its power far surpassed that of the first three swords. It could be said that Bai Ze had gained another trump card.
Bai Ze sheathed his longsword, gazed calmly at the sky, and murmured, "It's time to leave."
Three days later,
Bai Ze was already on horseback, traveling with a merchant caravan that had left Changqing County and was headed toward Pingfeng City.
This caravan had originally come from Pingfeng City, merely traveling to the surrounding counties each month to sell goods.
That was why Bai Ze had paid some money to join them, sparing himself some unnecessary trouble.
Just then, numerous martial artists suddenly appeared ahead and blocked the merchant caravan.
Bai Ze instantly tightened his grip on his longsword, ready to deal with whatever happened next.
But he soon saw the caravan leader walk forward directly, take out a bag, and hand it to the other party.
After opening it and checking its contents, the man waved his hand, and those behind him moved aside to clear the road.
Yet Bai Ze did not lower his guard. After all, he could not possibly entrust his life to others.
A middle-aged man beside him also noticed the scene and smiled as he took the initiative to say, "Little brother, this is your first time leaving Changqing County, isn't it?"
"That's right. But what does that have to do with anything?"
"Hahahaha, of course it has something to do with it."
Hearing Bai Ze's confusion, the middle-aged man smiled and said, "If you traveled with merchant caravans a few times, you would understand even without me explaining."
"When you joined the caravan before, didn't you pay quite a bit of silver? That money wasn't given for nothing."
Perhaps because he had nothing to do on the road and wanted someone to talk to, the man began explaining it to Bai Ze.
They paid the caravan silver to protect their safety along the journey, while the caravan paid the bandits silver so it could pass safely.
After all, compared with the goods carried by the entire caravan, that little bit of silver was utterly insignificant.
The bandits did not want to gorge themselves full in a single meal either. They wanted to eat their fill every meal, so things had gradually become what they were now.
After understanding everything, Bai Ze cupped his fist in his palm and said, "Uncle, surely there's more than one mountain stronghold with bandits along the road to Pingfeng City?"
"Are all bandits like this? Isn't there any bandit stronghold with other ideas?"
"How could there be none?"
Hearing this, the middle-aged man shook his head. His gaze seemed to grow deep, as though he had become lost in some unknown thought.
Seeing this, Bai Ze had not expected that he was a man with a story too.
When the man came back to himself, he gave a somewhat desolate smile and said, "Sorry, I remembered some things."
"Don't keep calling me uncle. Everyone who knows me calls me Old Wang. You can call me Old Wang too."
"Uh, Old Wang."
Although Bai Ze had already transmigrated here for several years, hearing the words "Old Wang" still inevitably made him think of a certain animal.
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