Chance Encounter by the River

Outside Guangling City.

A vast, surging river rushed past, its surface broad enough to span a thousand zhang.

The Great Cang River.

The longest river within Cloud River County, winding for several thousand li.

It was early morning.

Su Yi wore plain blue robes and walked north alone along the banks of the Great Cang River.

As he walked, he sensed the changes in the Spiritual Qi between heaven and earth.

Observing the lay of mountains and rivers, discerning the phenomena of heaven and earth.

This was the so-called art of "geomantic surveying."

Although Su Yi currently had no cultivation, the experience and horizons of his previous life remained.

That allowed him, from the courses of mountains, streams, and rivers, to perceive the distribution of Spiritual Qi between heaven and earth.

The Spiritual Qi differed from place to place.

He walked for more than ten li along the riverbank before finally stopping, a trace of satisfaction rising in his eyes.

Ahead lay a stretch of great mountains, its peaks gathered like a crowd, shrouded in mist year-round.

The Cloud Cang Mountain Range.

It stretched for eight hundred li and bordered the Great Cang River.

"Farther ahead is Ghost Mother Ridge of the Cloud Cang Mountains, the place that makes the common people of Guangling City turn pale at the mere mention of it..."

Su Yi clasped his hands behind his back and gazed into the distance.

For many years, Ghost Mother Ridge had been regarded as a land of "ominous great ill fortune."

Rumor had it that long ago, it had been the remains of a battlefield, heavy with Baleful Intent and yin energy. It was said that sinister, vicious ghostly things haunted it year-round.

Many of the ghost stories circulating in Guangling City were mostly connected to "Ghost Mother Ridge."

"Yin energy locks the mountain, and Baleful Intent mist refuses to disperse. This is indeed a 'blessed land' for Yin Souls and fierce ghosts."

After a long while, Su Yi withdrew his gaze and sighed softly in his heart. A pity I still have no cultivation. Otherwise, I could make a trip there, catch a few fierce ghosts, and have them gather spirit herbs in the mountains for me. In that case, I wouldn't have to go to all this trouble and run out to this remote place beyond the city to cultivate...

Ghosts truly existed in this world!

And Su Yi knew even better that ghostly beings were divided into Yin Souls, wraiths, specters, ghost spirits, and so on.

Among the Great Wilderness Nine Provinces, the "Western Underworld Ghost Emperor," whose origins were the most mysterious, had originally been a "ghostly being" born on the Ancient Battlefield, a legend among Ghost cultivators.

"Although the Spiritual Qi here is still very thin, for my current self, it's already quite good."

In the end, Su Yi decided to cultivate here.

This was a Mulberry Forest beside the Great Cang River. Ahead lay the Cloud Cang Mountain Range. It hid wind and gathered water, and the forces of mountain and river converged here; barely speaking, it could already count as a piece of "spirit land."

A gust of river wind blew over, and the Spiritual Qi flowing through the air refreshed the heart and delighted the spirit.

Huu~

Su Yi slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, and his body and mind gradually became clear, limpid, and ethereal, as though a full moon hung in a blue sky.

Then he slowly assumed his stance and performed the Pine Crane Body Forging Art.

"Sure enough, it's different from cultivating in the Wen Family..."

After only a short while, Su Yi, in the midst of cultivation, sensed strands of thin Spiritual Qi in the empty air within ten zhang nearby surging toward him and seeping into his body.

Like a spring breeze transforming into rain, moistening all things without a sound.

The vital blood throughout his body began to grow smooth and lively, as though it were cheering, leaping for joy, filled with abundant vitality.

Su Yi quickly cast aside that stray thought, and his body and mind immersed themselves in cultivation, utterly forgetting himself.

The sun rose to the middle of the sky; it was already noon.

This time, Su Yi cultivated for a full three double-hours!

Fortunately, this Mulberry Forest was in an extremely remote place, right beside the land of great ill fortune, Ghost Mother Ridge. Few people ever came here, so no one disturbed Su Yi's quiet cultivation.

Crack!

All of a sudden, a crisp sound rang out from Su Yi's tendons and bones, as though a layer of shell-like barrier around his body had been chiseled open. His vital blood surged and coursed through him like the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers.

At this moment, his body was like an ancient pine standing through ten thousand ages, connecting heaven and earth!

And the boiling, lively vital blood within him was like an immortal crane spreading its wings, roaming the blue heavens, free and unfettered, filled with a mysterious charm.

Pine and crane, movement and stillness in harmony, emptiness and substance giving birth to one another, form and intent both complete!

At this moment, the essence and spiritual charm of the Pine Crane Body Forging Art had been thoroughly mastered by Su Yi.

And through this, he stepped into the early stage of the Blood Moving Realm in one leap!

The Blood Moving Realm was the first realm of the Martial Dao, the beginning of cultivation, the foundation of the Great Dao, and was divided into four levels: Flesh Skin, Flesh Refining, Flesh Tendons, and Flesh Bones.

After a year, Su Yi finally possessed cultivation once more, here and now, on this very day!

Clang!

A familiar thread of sword hum rang out in Su Yi's mind, brimming with joy and excitement.

The Nine Hells Sword!

"You're happy for me too...?"

A subtle strange light rose in Su Yi's eyes.

In his previous life, when his young self had just begun cultivating, the Nine Hells Sword had been by his side, accompanying him as he battled his way down the Great Dao.

Even before his reincarnation, with his terrifying cultivation at the Profound Unification Realm, which had made him supreme throughout the Great Wilderness, he still had never managed to see through the Nine Hells Sword's true secrets!

Its origins.

The nine layers of divine chains sealed upon its blade.

All of them were steeped in mystery.

Su Yi could let go of the heaven-splashing wealth he had amassed over his lifetime, and his unrivaled fame and merit.

The one thing he alone could not let go of was the Nine Hells Sword!

Thus, before reincarnating in his previous life, Su Yi had sealed his lifetime of memories within this sword without the slightest hesitation, and carried the sword with him into reincarnation.

This sword was like his life; it could not be parted from!

Soon, Su Yi shook his head and began to quietly sense the changes in his own aura.

"Cultivating by breathing in and exhaling Spiritual Qi really is extraordinary."

After awakening the memories of his previous life, he had cultivated bitterly for three days in the Wen Family.

But all of that put together was far inferior to the three two-hour periods of cultivation here on the banks of the Great Cang River.

The difference between heaven and earth!

"If I cultivate here, it'll only take three days for me to reach full completion in 'Flesh Skin.'"

At this thought, Su Yi shook his head.

"If I only wanted to raise my cultivation realm, it would be as easy as turning over my hand. But in cultivating anew in this life, what I seek is a path that surpasses my previous life!"

"To accomplish that, I must build steadily at every realm, entrenching myself step by step."

"Remember, I absolutely cannot rush."

Su Yi reminded himself inwardly.

The Blood Moving Realm was the first of the martial path's realms.

Though this realm was the most fundamental, it was also the most important, enough to influence whether his future path of the Dao could go farther and longer.

He cultivated with the Pine Crane Body Forging Art precisely so that, within the Four Martial Realms, he could temper a foundation far beyond what he had possessed at the same realm in his previous life!

"Unfortunately, I don't have a penny to my name right now. If I had enough money, I could buy some medicinal herbs in the city. After cultivating each day, I could use medicinal baths to nourish my body and refine the medicinal essence, which would be enough to further improve and strengthen my physique."

"Next, I'll have to find a chance to earn some money..."

Su Yi was pondering his future cultivation plans.

Suddenly, a bout of violent coughing drifted over on the wind.

Su Yi turned his head and saw two figures walking over from the direction of Ghost Mother Ridge in the distance.

One was an old man in a long robe, and the other was a Purple-Clothed Girl.

The old man in the long robe's steps were unsteady, and his gaunt cheeks were deathly pale. As he walked, he coughed violently, coughing so hard he could barely catch his breath.

The Purple-Clothed Girl accompanied him at his side, worry written all over her exquisitely beautiful oval face.

Her purple clothes fluttered, and a white jade belt wrapped around a waist so slender it could be grasped in one hand. She was tall, and her looks were remarkably outstanding.

What was even rarer was that she possessed an air of clear nobility utterly different from ordinary people.

"Whether it's this old man or this girl, they're clearly both people long accustomed to high positions."

Su Yi withdrew his gaze after only a glance.

But just as he was about to leave, he paused, then once again looked toward the old man in the long robe.

At once, he made a new discovery, and a strange light could not help but rise deep in his eyes.

The old man in the long robe and the Purple-Clothed Girl had long since noticed Su Yi, but they had paid him no mind.

Yet when Su Yi's gaze fell on the old man in the long robe a second time, the Purple-Clothed Girl could not help but knit her brows, and a trace of anger appeared on her Pretty Face.

"Skulking around like a ghost—one look and it's obvious you're no good!"

Frost covered her Pretty Face as she glared at Su Yi.

Su Yi was startled. This girl had quite the temper.

"Zi Jin, do not be rude. No matter how worried you are about your grandfather's injuries, you cannot vent your anger on an innocent person."

The old man in the long robe's voice was warm and gentle. "In conducting oneself, one ought to restrain oneself and return to propriety; if it is not in accordance with propriety, do not speak it. Only thus can one keep the spiritual platform tranquil, and not be trapped by the six thieves within the heart."

The young woman called Zi Jin said in distress, "Grandfather, you're already injured this badly, yet you're still lecturing me. How could I have the heart to listen?"

The long-robed old man laughed despite himself and shook his head, then cupped his hands slightly toward Su Yi. "If there was any offense, I hope you'll forgive us, young friend."

As he spoke, he was suddenly seized by a violent fit of coughing. He coughed until blue veins bulged on his forehead, as if he were about to cough up his heart and lungs.

"Grandfather, please stop talking."

Worry filled Zi Jin's pretty face, and she was unbearably anxious as she carefully supported the old man's arm. "Once we return to the city, I'll find the best physician to treat your injuries."

Just then, Su Yi suddenly spoke. "No ordinary physician can save injuries like these. If you keep delaying, within three days, death will be certain and life impossible."

Zi Jin's eyes widened in fury, and she snapped, "How dare you! You actually dare curse my grandfather to die?"

But the long-robed old man smiled bitterly and said, "Zi Jin, this young friend is right. Grandfather's injuries are almost beyond medicine."

"This..."

Zi Jin looked as if she had been struck by lightning. Heartbroken, she said in a trembling voice, "Grandfather, I absolutely won't let anything happen to you! I'll take you back to Cloud River County City right now."

The long-robed old man smiled. "Don't panic. Life and death are decreed by heaven. I've spent my life on horseback and in armor, and I've long since taken such things lightly."

At this point, his gaze returned to Su Yi, his eyes subtle. "Young friend, forgive my presumption, but may I ask how you saw the injuries on this old man earlier?"

Su Yi had a good impression of this long-robed old man, so he did not hide it and said:

"There's a scarlet baleful intent between your brows, your face is deathly pale and bloodless, your lungs and viscera have been invaded by yin poison, and on top of that, strands of cold corpse qi are lingering around you. If my guess is correct, you encountered a 'Six Absolute Yin Corpse' earlier at Ghost Mother Ridge."

The long-robed old man could not help being moved. "What sharp eyes!"

Beside him, Zi Jin said in confusion, "That's not right. Grandfather, didn't you say that in Cloud River County, very few people know that a 'Six Absolute Yin Corpse' was born in Ghost Mother Ridge of Cloud Cang Mountain?"

This was precisely why the long-robed old man was so moved.

Forget Guangling City—even in the whole of Cloud River County, almost no one knew this secret.

Yet the young man before him had laid it bare with a single sentence, relying only on the injuries on his body!

Su Yi's expression was calm. "Being able to see that much is nothing. I can even be certain that you came here to gather 'Six Yin Grass' and 'Extreme Yang Flower.'"

"How did you know?"

Zi Jin was startled and blurted it out.

The long-robed old man's expression changed as well, and stormy waves surged in his heart.

A young man they had met by the roadside had actually seen through both the injuries he had suffered and the purpose of this trip solely by the power of his eyes.

This was simply far too terrifying!

"How did I know?"

Su Yi shook his head and gave a faint, mocking laugh. "Miss, don't tell me you don't know that wherever a 'Six Absolute Yin Corpse' appears, Six Yin Grass is certain to grow? This kind of spirit medicine is extremely cold and extremely yin. As the saying goes, lone yin does not grow, lone yang does not arise. Wherever Six Yin Grass grows, Extreme Yang Flower is certain to accompany it."

This bit of knowledge would be common sense in the Great Wilderness Nine Provinces!

But clearly, Zi Jin had been stunned speechless.

Even the long-robed old man's expression revealed a trace of shock he could not conceal.

In his eyes, the tall, slender young man opposite him had gained an unfathomable air.

This extra update is for Alliance Chief Bandit Bro!

Tomorrow, there will be an extra update for Alliance Chief Daozhang~

Don't mind Goldfish being too long-winded. During the new book period, I'm desperately craving follows and votes~~ I'm begging you all!