Meridian Problems

"Of course I wanted to advance to the Mystic Spirit Realm." Zhang Shiqing spoke coldly. "But I knew better than anyone what the cultivation art I practiced was like. There might be some discomfort at the beginning, but once I reached mastery, everything would fall into place naturally."

So confident?

A thought stirred in Qin Jishi's mind. "Baihe, could you tell what was wrong with her cultivation art?"

Under Zhang Shiqing's icy aura, Qin Jishi had initially failed to spot her problem. Only after observing her for a long time did he reach a conclusion: her cultivation art was anything but ordinary.

"The Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art."

Baihe's voice rang out. "She must have encountered some kind of fortuitous opportunity, and she also possesses the Ice Phoenix Sacred Body. If you use her as a Cultivation Cauldron now, you can advance to the Heavenly Dipper Realm. If you use the Chaos Bead to devour her essence blood, you can obtain the Ice Phoenix bloodline."

Qin Jishi: "..."

Baihe was always so blunt. As long as it benefited Qin Jishi, she would tell him everything she knew without holding anything back.

What a joke. No matter what, Zhang Shiqing was his wife in name. Using her as a Cultivation Cauldron could perhaps be considered, but devouring her essence blood? Better forget it.

The Ice Phoenix Sacred Body?

Qin Jishi narrowed his eyes slightly. He already had a judgment in mind. Baihe had once told him about certain special physiques in this world. For instance, he himself possessed a special physique as well—the Eternal Undying Body, free from all shackles in cultivation.

Having gained a preliminary understanding of Zhang Shiqing, Qin Jishi nodded and said gravely, "You are right. As a supreme cultivation art, the Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art can indeed allow you to rapidly increase your cultivation. But forcing a breakthrough will also bring you irreversible harm."

Zhang Shiqing's willow brows shot upward, and her gaze abruptly turned icy. At that moment, she truly revealed killing intent toward Qin Jishi. "How did you know about the Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art?"

Sensing her sudden change, Qin Jishi smiled faintly and said leisurely, "What? Are you planning to murder your own husband and become a living widow afterward?"

"Answer my question." Zhang Shiqing glared at him coldly, though her heart was already filled with shock.

The secret of the Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art had been buried deep in Zhang Shiqing's heart for four whole years. Even those closest to her knew nothing of it.

Zhang Shiqing had obtained the Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art by chance. That year, she had gone out to train when dark clouds filled the sky and thunderbolts crashed down. A bolt of lightning struck her, and when she awoke, the Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art had appeared in her mind.

At first, Zhang Shiqing had been puzzled. Later, relying on the Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art, she had broken through to the Ninth Level of Qi Condensation in merely four years.

At that time, Zhang Shiqing had not known what grade the Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art was, but it had likely already surpassed the Heaven Grade.

She understood the truth that a man was guilty for possessing a jade better than anyone.

If others learned that she possessed such a heaven-defying cultivation art, the entire Zhang Family would likely suffer calamity.

Yet Qin Jishi had seen through her cultivation art at a single glance. How could she not harbor killing intent? This matter was no trifling one; the slightest misstep could plunge the entire Zhang Family into eternal damnation.

"You needn't be nervous." Qin Jishi remained as calm as still water. "I have merely read some strange tales and unusual records. Combined with your symptoms, I made a guess. But judging by your reaction now, it seems my guess was correct."

"You think I would believe such a story?" Zhang Shiqing flatly refused to believe that someone could determine the cultivation art she practiced merely from her pulse.

Absurd!

If every healer possessed such an ability, what secrets could anyone in the world possibly have?

Yet everything Qin Jishi had said was entirely accurate, and that left Zhang Shiqing unable to suppress her alarm.

"I know you do not believe me." Qin Jishi rose to his feet and walked over to Zhang Shiqing.

"What are you going to do?" Zhang Shiqing looked at him in confusion.

"Help you break through to the Mystic Spirit Realm, naturally."

"There is no need!" Zhang Shiqing directly shook her head in refusal.

"Confidence is a good thing. But when confidence goes too far, the price you pay will be just as immeasurable."

The corners of Qin Jishi's lips curled upward as he said blandly, "I know you have always doubted me, even disliked me. To be honest, if Old Man had not arranged this marriage for me and forced me to honor it, there would have been no possibility between us."

Zhang Shiqing: "..."

After a brief pause, Qin Jishi continued, "There is one more thing. I have no reason to harm you. At least in name, you are my woman. I have not gone so mad that I would harm you just to end this marriage agreement."

"Of course, I am mainly just bored. Since you want to rely on yourself to advance to the Mystic Spirit Realm and do not care about those injuries, then pretend I never said anything."

Qin Jishi's words left Zhang Shiqing stunned. A moment later, a jumble of emotions surged through her heart, and she did not know how to express them. Everything he had done just now had been out of concern for her, yet she had revealed killing intent toward him.

Hoo—

Zhang Shiqing found herself increasingly unable to see through Qin Jishi. Was he truly the useless cripple incapable of cultivation?

All of this began to change Zhang Shiqing's view of Qin Jishi.

Could he really have a way to resolve the problem with her meridians?

With that thought, Zhang Shiqing cast him a faint glance. "Do you really have a way to resolve the problem with my meridians?"

Black lines appeared across Qin Jishi's forehead. Where had all that stubbornness from before gone?

As if she had seen through his thoughts, Zhang Shiqing's tone softened. "I merely wanted to see whether you were truly putting on an act."

"Hehe." Qin Jishi laughed. "You obviously want it, yet your mouth says no."

"Ah."

With a sigh, he said, "Come. Hold out your hand."

Qin Jishi sat down in front of Zhang Shiqing. She said nothing and pulled her loose red sleeve up to her elbow, revealing an arm smooth enough to seem as though it would break at a touch.

Without further nonsense, Qin Jishi pressed two fingers together, and a golden needle appeared.

"Mystic... Mystic energy?" Zhang Shiqing raised her brows. "You can cultivate?"

"I never said I could not cultivate." Qin Jishi shrugged. "You people simply always believed that I could not."

"You..." Zhang Shiqing grew even more curious—curious about what Qin Jishi had experienced over the past ten years.

While Zhang Shiqing was still lost in confusion, the golden needle had already entered her arm. The moment it pierced her body, she dazed for an instant, for she clearly felt a gentle energy begin to flow throughout her entire body.

Before Zhang Shiqing could react, Qin Jishi condensed another golden needle. His fingers moved, and the second needle entered her body, followed by the third, the fourth, and the fifth.

"Relax. Circulate the mystic energy within your body. Do not rush it under any circumstances."

Qin Jishi's voice sounded beside her ear. She cooperated with him and began circulating the mystic energy within her body. As she circulated it more and more, after one great cycle, Zhang Shiqing discovered in astonishment that the difficulty she had once faced had vanished. Her meridians, once seemingly blocked, had become clear and open all the way to her heart.

"How does it feel?" Qin Jishi asked casually.

Zhang Shiqing's elegant brows shifted slightly, and an undisguisable comfort appeared on her face. The feeling was like a mountain that had bound her for years suddenly disappearing without a trace.

More importantly, the gentle sensation within her body was something she had never experienced before. Zhang Shiqing lifted her eyes to Qin Jishi, unable to conceal her astonishment. "What is going on?"

"Simple." Qin Jishi said it as though it were nothing. "The Ice Phoenix Sealing Heaven Art you cultivate is a supreme art, and the ice attribute it circulates is likewise a high-level force. Though you possess the Ice Phoenix Sacred Body, you do not know how to guide the ice-elemental power. That has caused some damage to the meridians in your body. They were injured by the cold aura, and many meridians became blocked due to frequent spasms. Now that I have cleared your meridians and dispelled the cold aura from the damaged ones, the mystic energy in your body will naturally circulate without obstruction."

Zhang Shiqing blinked her beautiful eyes as she studied Qin Jishi, an indescribable look in her gaze.