Yellow Millet Dream

Inside a private room on the second floor of the tavern, the hot pot broth churned with ingredients, steam rising thickly.

The bloated, fat yellow man, while eating hot pot, raised a sheet of paper covered in scrawled handwriting and turned to the person beside him, saying:

"Hey, that Wang Chan guy, he's got some real stuff... Look at what he wrote down from memory, it looks like genuine Qi refining techniques."

"[Twelve Spiritual Qi Breathing Method], never heard of it, wonder if it can be cultivated..."

"Something spat out by [Yellow Millet Dream], how could it be fake?"

"..."

On the window lattice, a black cat curled up like a lump of coal, a small jade pendant tied to its neck with a red string. It occasionally glanced at the empty street where a figure had vanished, then turned to look at the two from Green Deer Mountain inside the room, its eyes flickering.

Then, the black cat let out a comfortable burp, squinted its eyes slightly, and a bloodthirsty smile curled at the corners of its mouth.

"Rip!"

The wooden sliding door was roughly yanked open from outside by a large hand, and a figure stepped inside.

"Wang Chan—"

The fat yellow man and his companion looked puzzled, staring at the young intruder for a long moment, then exchanged glances. The fat yellow man scratched his neck:

"Wang Chan's not here... Who are you?"

"...Chen Xuan."

The man stepped inside, glanced down at the hot pot on the table, pulled out a chair, and sat down, speaking calmly: "Finding you two is the same."

The two were taken aback, slowly setting down their chopsticks.

"Oh, that martial arts expert..."

Their tone carried a hint of dismissive mockery.

Chen Xuan's expression remained unchanged as he asked: "You two are the Qi Refiners from Green Deer Mountain?"

"A month ago, we were martial artists like you... But now, after undergoing [Feather Transformation], we're half Qi Refiners."

The fat yellow man answered with a sneer, a carefree look on his face as he continued: "Yang, Yang... that stubborn old man? Looks like you killed him. But I don't get it, why come looking for us? See, Wang Chan wasn't wrong—you really did betray your master and destroy your clan..."

"At this point, I have no desire to argue right or wrong."

Chen Xuan shook his head, one arm resting on the table, the other hand clenched into a fist beneath it at his abdomen, his fingertips seemingly brushing against something.

"Haha, he's blaming us!"

The linen-clad middle-aged man on the left stood up, pointing at Chen Xuan's head, and laughed at the fat yellow man: "He's blaming us, the martial arts expert, so scary, haha... Wang Chan didn't even take you seriously. Who do you think you are, acting all high and mighty in front of us? You're blind, walking right into death!"

Chen Xuan turned his head, staring at the man's manic grin, and said: "I also don't get it—you're not real Qi Refiners, so why—"

"Zheng!"

A sharp whistle of a weapon cutting through the air rang out instantly. Chen Xuan's arm shot out like a black lightning bolt, sweeping across the middle-aged man's neck.

"Puff!"

The man instinctively reached up to cover it, but a smooth slit split open at his neck, like a zipper being pulled, blood gushing out from between his fingers like a fountain, splattering all over the table.

With a crash, the man fell.

"At this distance, in one breath, I can strike eight times and kill everyone here."

Chen Xuan stood up, bracing his hands on the table, looking down at the terrified fat man, and asked:

"Now can we talk calmly... about where Wang Chan went?"

Murderous intent surged.

He didn't understand how Wang Chan had tricked Master Yang... but that no longer mattered. In life, one always runs into all sorts of inexplicable things.

But once the move is made, there's no regret. When someone makes a choice, they must bear the consequences of that choice!

"Little brother, let's talk this out..."

The fat yellow man, pale with fear, swallowed hard, stood up from his seat, and stammered:

"That group from Green Deer Mountain took [Yellow Millet Dream] and rushed off to the Southern Wasteland to seek fortune. We two were just disciples picked up along the way, couldn't keep up, so we stayed behind... Hey, you've never heard of [Yellow Millet Dream], have you? It means someone reborn—that's Wang Chan. Now!"

"Boom!"

The table was flipped up from below, bowls and dishes flying, broth splattering everywhere. A figure lunged at Chen Xuan like a clinging bone!

It was the man whose throat had been completely slit!

He couldn't even die from that?

Chen Xuan's heart jolted—he had underestimated the cultivators of this era. But he had stayed alert and reacted quickly, immediately kicking the newly risen man's head with full force, sending him flying.

The man slammed into the corner with a crack, his neck bone snapped clean, head drooping onto his chest. This time, he was finally dead beyond dead.

"Boom!"

The next moment, a violent roar erupted in front of him, making Chen Xuan's scalp tingle.

A fist imprint, radiating a white treasure light and the size of an iron bowl, pierced through the flying table and shot straight at him, rapidly enlarging in his vision.

"Little brother, this fist of mine has a thousand jin of force—can you take it?"

Before entering Green Deer Mountain.

The Fat Yellow Man was also a top-tier martial arts master in a large town, his martial skills no less than Yang Qingshan's, and at just over thirty years old, he was in the prime of his vitality!

Chen Xuan crossed his hands in front of his chest, simultaneously stomping hard on the ground with both feet, launching his entire body backward in a springing leap, trying every way to deflect the force of that unavoidable punch.

"Bam!"

Chen Xuan was struck, flying out like a cannonball and slamming heavily into the ground. He then actively rolled backward a few more times until he hit a wall, barely managing to shed seventy or eighty percent of the force.

He looked up.

The Fat Yellow Man had already torn through the tabletop, both fists radiating a dazzling white Treasure Light, swooping down like a fierce eagle.

"If martial arts were useful, why would we bother cultivating Qi—"

Though inwardly deeply shaken by the young man's superb martial techniques, he had to admit that, in terms of pure martial arts alone, this youth might already be a notch above him, a seasoned fighter. But as he said, this was the era ruled by Qi Refiners!

"..."

Chen Xuan gritted his teeth, rolling aside to dodge. The gale-force wind exploded against his back, punching two large holes straight through the brick wall.

This was the irresistible force of Qi Control.

To put it in perspective, an ordinary person's punch carried at most one or two hundred jin of force. Even someone as strong as Chen Xuan—the top martial artist in Willow Town, a martial prodigy whom even Master Yang and Master Pei willingly acknowledged—could only muster five or six hundred jin with a normal punch... If he gathered Qi purely to measure his strength, it would naturally be much higher, but in combat, he might throw several punches in a single breath, unable to pour his full power into each one.

Yet the Fat Yellow Man's casual strike already reached a terrifying thousand jin—twice Chen Xuan's output!

Moreover, the white radiance enveloping the Fat Yellow Man's fist seal was extraordinary, making his fist gleam like carved Jade Stones, so tough that even sharp weapons struggled to break through.

He couldn't take that fist head-on.

Chen Xuan understood that if he were hit directly, the consequences would be unimaginable.

"Hah!"

In the blink of an eye, a fierce glint flashed in Chen Xuan's eyes. He furrowed his brows, grabbed the Fat Yellow Man's arm, and suddenly dropped his entire body downward, trying to use all his strength to drag the man to the ground for a messy, close-quarters brawl.

...He couldn't budge him.

The two were locked for a few breaths, and then Chen Xuan's entire body was lifted off the ground by the Fat Yellow Man's massive, radiance-shrouded hand.

"Courting death!"

The Fat Yellow Man rejoiced, his tiger eyes bulging as his other large hand shot out like iron pincers toward Chen Xuan's head, aiming to twist it into a pretzel.

"Hah!"

Instead of retreating, Chen Xuan pressed forward, using the momentum of the Fat Yellow Man lifting his arm to sidestep and crash into the man's chest.

The Fat Yellow Man realized he'd been tricked, and his hairs stood on end. The young man's sudden decisiveness and ruthlessness sent a chill straight to his crown!

"Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!"

In an instant, Chen Xuan launched a lightning-fast barrage. Eight or nine streaks of eerie cold light bloomed in the air at breakneck speed, and countless ink-like black lines sprayed out from the Fat Yellow Man's chest, abdomen, neck, face...

The Fat Yellow Man fought desperately, his empty fist simultaneously slamming down hard onto Chen Xuan's back. But after one vicious blow, his strength gradually waned.

"Clang!"

Then, the Fat Yellow Man's bloated body collapsed like a small mountain.

After a moment.

Chen Xuan, his face as pale as gold leaf, staggered to his feet from the ground. Leaning against the wall, he dry-heaved a few times and spat out a pool of black-red blood.

"Indeed, martial arts have no future. I need to cultivate Qi..."

Chen Xuan's lips were pale as he smiled and sighed. This had been an extremely perilous battle, and he hadn't won easily.

A month ago, the Fat Yellow Man was still a martial arts master in the mortal realm, but as soon as Green Deer Mountain accepted him to cultivate Qi, he instantly broke through the limits of human strength and became a transcendent being.

Cultivate Qi.

He had to cultivate Qi.

Chen Xuan thought this to himself as he surveyed the wrecked room, then walked toward the two corpses on the ground.

"[Twelve Spiritual Qi Breathing Method]..."

Chen Xuan picked up a piece of paper from the floor, glanced at it, and without time to read it closely, stuffed it into his bosom. Then he quickly searched the two bodies several times.

He found a few lustrous, flowing Jade Stones... likely a form of currency in the Qi Refining World.

And a map.

Aside from that, there was nothing else.

In tales of strange legends, stories of cultivators killing and looting corpses to strike it rich often appeared, but in most cases, that wasn't realistic.

The world was dangerous. When people traveled, they didn't carry truly precious items on them; they hid them away.

"Southern Wilderness Mountains..."

Chen Xuan spread open the ancient map, searching for his target: "The route into Green Deer Mountain... the legendary Peach Blossom Spring Village, huh, isn't that near my hometown..."

Three years ago, following the advice of the village elders, he had set out from the village, trekked across most of the desolate Peach Town territory, walked for half a month, and finally arrived at neighboring Willow Town to train in martial arts.

Peach Blossom Spring Village was a village under Peach Town... a village that existed only in legend.

"Wang Chan... this isn't over yet."

Chen Xuan clenched the map, tucked it into his sleeve, and turned to leave.

But in that very instant of turning, an uncontrollable chill surged from his tailbone, spreading through his entire body.

From the corner of his eye, a fleeting glimpse.

"Whoosh!"

Countless square-holed round white paper money fluttered down from the air, scattering freely. Golden-white funeral streamers fluttered, burning, and there was a pyre with a flickering pale flame, accompanied by an extremely faint sound of weeping.

Black mist churned, the sky darkened.

Vaguely, a pair of eerie pure-golden eyes silently lit up within the black mist.

"What is this? Who is mourning? Who is burning paper money? Whose eyes are those..."

Chen Xuan was stunned, then his scalp went numb. He had no idea what was happening—what kind of place was this?

In an instant.

Chen Xuan's hair stood on end. He realized that after three years, he had finally seen again that which defied imagination, the utterly maddening.

Unexpectedly, the end had arrived.