Immortal Art

Chen Luo was having a hard time too. He was stuck fast to the blue gem, and the "invisible, untouchable" breaths from his several rounds of qi circulation at the cave entrance earlier had taken effect.

The instant the blue radiance entered his body, those breaths provided a slight obstruction.

It was this fleeting gap that gave Chen Luo time to react.

He could not withstand this power!

Not only him—even the remaining ninety-nine brains inside the body could not endure it. Only aptitude! Only those with aptitude could cultivate immortality.

Switch to the Royal Family Brain.

At the instant of realization, Chen Luo activated the Royal Family Brain at the last possible moment.

Sure enough, after switching to the Royal Family Brain, the destructive force of the blue light vanished. It became energy he could absorb, like Internal Qi. The difference was that he had cultivated Internal Qi himself, accumulating it bit by bit, whereas this Blue Energy was pouring into him of its own accord.

There was not even room to refuse!

The instant the Blue Energy was absorbed, Chen Luo felt as though he had floated up to Cloud Top. That strange sensation of leaving his body surfaced in his heart once more. And This Time, it was even clearer than last time.

He felt as if he had attained great freedom, drifting out of the mine tunnel and leaving the valley.

His field of vision stretched farther into the distance. He even saw Old Man Tian and his three nephews fleeing back from afar.

Great liberation, great freedom.

Crack!!

He did not know how much time had passed before a crisp sound reached him.

Chen Luo's thoughts were yanked back. The feeling of great liberation and great freedom disappeared, his mind became incomparably exhausted, and his body grew terribly heavy, as though he had been wrapped in a layer of shackles.

The blue radiance inside the cavern completely faded away.

Over there, Old Daoist Lichen, who had been frozen in mid-air, lost the blue light's restraint and immediately crashed to the ground like a dead dog. With a bang, the corpse struck the ground and was smashed directly into meat paste. Dark-red blood seeped into the earth and was sucked clean, as if no one had ever come here.

What a pity about that brain.

The thought flashed through Chen Luo's mind.

He withdrew his hand and looked at the blue crystal that had shattered into fragments before him, as though he had awoken from a dream.

"Was this Immortal Art? That feeling..."

The blue crystal, having exhausted its final trace of energy, cracked apart once more. Before Chen Luo's eyes, it turned into dust and scattered away.

Hearing the sound, Chen Luo finally came fully back to his senses.

He wanted to walk, only to discover an unsettling mismatch between his thoughts and his body.

Two seconds after a thought arose, his body would finally begin to move.

Not only that, the meridians inside the body seemed to have absorbed too much energy and suffered widespread damage. Many areas of his internal organs were bleeding as well. From the perspective of Martial Dao, he was already grievously wounded beyond saving. Yet strangely, he did not feel close to death at all. Instead, he felt as though he had strength to spare.

"Leave this place first."

Forcing himself to endure the dizziness, Chen Luo swayed as he controlled his body toward the cave entrance.

He had not forgotten the phenomenon that had appeared when the mine tunnel opened. He had to escape before anyone else arrived.

Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened during his departure.

After leaving the mine tunnel, Chen Luo got his bearings. Remembering the location where he had seen Old Man Tian and his nephews, he swayed after them.

He had to get as far away as possible.

This place would soon become the eye of the vortex.

Who knew where that blade-wielding Grandmaster's head was thrown? What a waste.

Chen Luo walked with great difficulty, but his mind was extraordinarily active. He even had the leisure to admire the valley's scenery and think about what to eat the next morning.

Not long after he left, more people arrived at the valley.

Countless voices tangled together, eventually giving way to the clash of blades and weapons, to Jianghu slaughter.

Several factions fought a decisive battle here.

No one knew how many Jianghu Wanderers died. In the end, no one knew who successfully broke in or who fought their way out. At any rate, the valley was ultimately occupied by the Imperial Court. The entire area was designated a forbidden zone, and anyone who approached would be killed without mercy.

Chen Luo fled eastward without stopping. He did not know how long he walked before he finally saw the backs of Old Man Tian and his three nephews.

His sounds startled the four of them. Old Man Tian looked back and could not help crying out.

"Great Hero?"

"How did you get hurt this badly? Did you run into those thieves?"

The world in his eyes was now doubled over. Each step he took felt as heavy as a thousand jin. Upon hearing that familiar voice, he could no longer hold on and toppled headfirst to the ground.

"What are you standing around for? Get over here and save him!"

Old Man Tian ran over and helped Chen Luo up. Seeing his nephew and the Fang Shan brothers still standing to the side, he could not help roaring at them.

"Fifth Uncle, we don't even know this man well. There's no need to invite this trouble."

Tian Danu did not want to save him.

In his view, someone like Chen Luo was trouble Itself Is. The safest course now was to leave him here and let him fend for himself. Then, even if any Jianghu grudge killing followed, it would have nothing to do with them.

"Bullshit! If it hadn't been for the Great Hero's protection earlier, you brat would have died long ago! And you two as well—you don't even understand the basic principle of repaying kindness. How did you grow up like this?!"

Old Man Tian unleashed a torrent of curses, scolding Tian Danu and the Fang Shan brothers until their faces burned red. In the end, they could only join Old Man Tian in saving him.

The unconscious Chen Luo witnessed all of this.

He was not truly unconscious. His body and mind were simply severely out of sync. This should have been an aftereffect of absorbing the Blue Gem, and he needed time to recover.

Half a day later.

With the help of the three men, Chen Luo arrived at a small village nearby.

Old Man Tian took out the money Chen Luo had given him earlier, bought an ox in the village, rigged up a simple ox cart, and carried Chen Luo onward toward their village.

Along the way, they saw quite a few Jianghu experts.

These people came and went like the wind, each soaring high overhead as they rushed toward the valley from which the group had escaped. Occasionally, someone stopped them to question them, but upon seeing their clothing and strength, they let them pass.

As for Chen Luo, in the eyes of the current Jianghu Wanderers, he was merely a consumptive wretch suffering from a grave illness and on the verge of death.

Even Jianghu Wanderers did not want to come near such a person, afraid they might catch the disease.

And so, another two days passed.

The group had completely left the valley's range and returned to Swallow Ridge.

Once they reached this place, the road ahead was familiar, and driving the ox cart became much less tiring.

"Fifth Uncle, do you think this man is already dead?"

Fang Cun sat at the back of the ox cart. Looking at Chen Luo lying on the straw, he could not help asking.

Ever since fainting that day, Chen Luo had never awakened. Blood still seeped from his nose and mouth from time to time. If not for the sound of his heartbeat, they would all have thought he had gone cold.

"Dead or not, we still have to deliver him."

Old Man Tian drove the ox cart in front. Hearing the question, he looked back. He remembered the destination Chen Luo had given when placing the order and had never forgotten it.

"The most important thing in being human is keeping your word and drawing a clear line between kindness and grudges. Otherwise, what difference is there between you and a wolf-hearted, dog-lunged beast?" As he spoke, Old Man Tian did not forget to raise his hand and give his nephew a slap. Tian Danu's selfish words earlier had displeased the old man.

He felt his eldest brother had failed to educate his nephew properly and had let his values go crooked.

"Fifth Uncle, I really know I was wrong. Keep slapping me, and I'll turn stupid."

Tian Danu was frustrated too. He had merely offered a reminder out of concern for their safety—how had it become wolf-hearted and dog-lunged when it reached his fifth uncle? In that earlier situation, ordinary people without any martial skill like them had no ability to get involved at all. If they casually ran into any jianghu wanderer, the uncle and nephews would all be finished.

In such circumstances, any normal person would consider their own safety first. Tian Danu felt that his reasoning was not wrong.

Even now, he still thought so.

Of course, he could not say that to Fifth Uncle, or he would get beaten again.