She felt as though her soul had been pulled from her body, floating weightlessly in midair.
Yet the waves of pleasure surging from the very depths of her body, each one higher than the last and threatening to drown her completely, felt so real—so real that they drove her to despair and shattered her.
Tears mingled with fragrant sweat and streamed from the corners of her eyes, falling onto the slick skin pressed tightly against hers. The frightening heat between them seemed to evaporate them at once.
"Harder."
Lin Xuan's voice sounded beside her ear once more.
This time, with her mind already lost, Li Mochou obeyed almost instinctively, her body acting before she could think.
She lifted her chest slightly and tried to tighten the muscles there, holding him more tightly and drawing him closer.
"Mm..."
A deeply satisfied groan escaped Lin Xuan's throat.
To Li Mochou, whose mind was in disarray, that faint response felt like a strange, dangerous encouragement.
Her forced, stiff movements gradually took on a hint of something she hadn't even noticed herself—a desire to please him, to accommodate him.
She began to... meet his movements, to press against him, to feel him, to please him...
The air in the stone chamber seemed to catch fire.
Her wanton, breathless moans mingled with the intimate, embarrassing sounds of their bodies, composing a song of depravity in the vast, silent Ancient Tomb.
Li Mochou's awareness had grown utterly blurred.
She didn't know how much time had passed. Just as she felt she was about to dissolve completely in the boundless tide of desire, Lin Xuan's movements suddenly and without warning grew faster!
His breathing turned ragged.
"Ah—!"
With a low growl like a beast's, Lin Xuan's body suddenly stiffened.
A scorching rush, charged with fierce masculine vitality, burst forth like a volcano that had been building pressure for a thousand years. Heat washed over her chest; the force of his release surged against her, igniting every sense and making her tremble all over.
Li Mochou's body convulsed violently in that final, furious wave, then went completely limp.
Like a puddle of mud with every bone removed, she collapsed weakly across Lin Xuan's lap.
Everything fell silent.
Li Mochou lay across Lin Xuan's legs, gradually recovering from her ragged breathing.
Author's note:
Author's note: Join the group for the full version.
Chapter Eleven: The Innate Technique?
After Yang Guo left, life in the Ancient Tomb was very comfortable for Lin Xuan. He grew closer to Little Dragon Girl while enjoying Li Mochou's "attentiveness."
Recently, however, he had made a major discovery.
The Ancient Tomb held countless books, as vast as the sea. From Lin Chaoying's exquisite sword techniques to the ingenious arts devised to counter the Quanzhen Sect's martial arts, Lin Xuan read them all and committed them to memory.
Yet these ordinary martial arts were not what truly shook him. In a hidden stone chamber, inside a red sandalwood box, he had found a letter.
There was only one character on the envelope: "Ying." Yet the strokes were powerful, and every line carried an air of defiance toward the world. When he unfolded the letter, the writing danced across the page, brimming with pride that looked down upon all living things.
"My dear younger sister Chaoying:
"Recently, I entered seclusion to devote myself to the orthodox teachings of the Dao. I have gained some insight and named it the Innate Technique.
"What is innate? Once a person is born into this world, the flow of their breath is all acquired. Acquired energy is impure and imperfect, and is ultimately bound by limitations. Those of us who cultivate the Dao must seek to return to simplicity and trace things back to their source.
"This technique is meant to break through the barriers of the acquired and reach the source of the human body—the 'Innate Qi' that exists before birth."
In the letter, Wang Chongyang continued with evident satisfaction: "The wonder of this technique lies in 'preserving' and 'transforming.' It seeks neither unusual moves nor mighty Internal Energy, only the cultivation of pure, pristine 'innate ancestral qi' in the Dantian.
"Once this qi is born, all techniques become meaningless and no evil can invade. No matter how cold and vicious your Internal Energy may be, the instant it touches this qi, it will melt like snow beneath the blazing sun. No matter how wondrous your changes may be, before my innate qi they are rootless duckweed, unable to withstand a single blow."
He also wrote that though Lin Chaoying's martial arts were unrivaled, she had already entered the acquired realm. If she could see through this, she alone in the world could stand beside him and discuss the Dao. At the end of the letter, he briefly described the cultivation method and the technique's wondrous effects.
Lin Xuan closed the letter and let out a long breath.
He possessed both the Yin Yang Deficit Supplementation Technique and the Nine Yin Manual. His Internal Energy was powerful and domineering, but its foundation had never been pure enough, and still carried traces of impurity.
The core principle of Wang Chongyang's Innate Technique—"returning to simplicity and tracing things back to their source"—was precisely the supreme method he needed to resolve this problem!
Once he had decided, Lin Xuan wasted no time.
He sat cross-legged on the cold jade bed and began refining his Internal Energy according to the letter's instructions.
His eyes were shut, his expression tranquil, as still as a deep well. His long black hair fell unbound over his broad shoulders like a waterfall of ink.
His upper body was bare, revealing a powerful physique repeatedly tempered by the Yin Yang Deficit Supplementation Technique. Every inch of muscle was perfectly defined, without a trace of excess fat, yet held astonishing explosive power.
In the reflected chill, his skin gleamed with the healthy luster of warm jade, a striking contrast to the cold jade bed's blue-white hue.
He seemed to blend into the silence of the Ancient Tomb, like a stone statue that had endured since time immemorial. His breathing was long and slow, almost imperceptible.
Though Lin Xuan had accomplished great deeds in the battle of Xiangyang and made his name known throughout the world, he understood better than anyone that he had relied more on strategy than strength.
His own martial prowess still fell short when facing the true masters of the martial world. Whether East Heretic and West Venom, or Southern Emperor and Northern Beggar, none could be defeated in a one-on-one fight.
And this Ancient Tomb, with its cold jade bed, was the ideal place for him to transform his strength.
The "strengthening the foundation and transforming acquired into innate" principle of Wang Chongyang's Innate Technique fascinated him.
The technique aimed to repeatedly purify the impure energy within a practitioner until it was compressed into a thread of the purest "Innate Qi."
It was just what the Yin Yang Deficit Supplementation Technique lacked most.
The Yin Yang Deficit Supplementation Technique was peerlessly domineering. It could forcibly absorb another person's Yin essence and convert it for the practitioner's use, allowing rapid progress and defying the natural order. Its drawback, however, was that the absorbed Yin essence was impure and difficult to fully assimilate.
The Innate Technique was like the finest alchemical furnace. It cast all the Yin essence Lin Xuan had absorbed from other women into an invisible crucible, repeatedly refining it with the true fire of the Daoist arts, removing impurities and preserving the essence until it could be made his own.
Lin Xuan sat cross-legged on the cold jade bed and sank his awareness into his Dantian.
In that vast, boundless sea of qi, several differently colored currents churned. They were the Yin essence he had absorbed from various women.
Lin Xuan focused his thoughts, and the formula of the Innate Technique flowed through his mind.
"Whoosh..."
He exhaled a long breath of stale air. It condensed in the cold air into a white stream and lingered as though it had substance.
Within his Dantian, an invisible vortex formed from pure energy began to turn slowly. At its core was a nascent thread of golden "Innate Qi."
As the vortex accelerated, it generated a powerful pull, drawing all the impure currents into itself.
"Zzz..."
Amid the soft crackling, all the streams flowed into the sea. It was like a hundredfold-refined steel being thrown into a furnace, producing a faint rumble. Guided by the Innate Qi, the impure currents were gradually broken down and purified.
What remained was the purest source of energy. Assimilated by the Innate Qi, it ultimately flowed into Lin Xuan's own sea of qi, becoming part of his strength.
The process was painful and prolonged. Each purification was like washing and expanding his meridians anew, bringing a tearing pain as if they were being severed.
Yet Lin Xuan welcomed it. He could clearly feel his Internal Energy undergoing a qualitative transformation, becoming denser and purer. It flowed without the slightest obstruction, smooth and effortless, as if it had become part of his body's instincts.
However, as his cultivation deepened, a new bottleneck appeared.
Both the absorption of the Yin Yang Deficit Supplementation Technique and the refining of the Innate Technique required a practitioner's full concentration.
Dividing one's attention could easily send one's qi astray. At best, it led to cultivation deviation; at worst, the meridians would be shattered. This severely limited his cultivation speed.
He had to spend a great deal of time absorbing energy, then just as much time refining it. Like a clumsy craftsman unable to perform two processes at once, his efficiency was poor.
"If only... I could absorb and refine at the same time."
The thought flashed through Lin Xuan's mind like a bolt of lightning in the darkness, suddenly illuminating everything.
He opened his eyes. A near-mad gleam shone in their depths.
He remembered another supreme art he had secretly copied from the Ancient Tomb's stone wall, one Huang Rong had never taught him: the "Soul Shifting Great Law," from the general principles of the Nine Yin Manual.
Huang Rong had withheld it because the technique was too sinister. The slightest mistake could damage one's own mind and lead one down the demonic path. She had hoped Lin Xuan would follow a righteous and honorable road.
"The essence of the Soul Shifting Great Law lies in using powerful spiritual force to disturb, influence, and even directly control another person's thoughts and will..."
Countless ideas collided and fused in Lin Xuan's mind.
"If it can control someone else, then why... can't it be used to control myself? I could focus my mind to the utmost, concentrate beyond ordinary limits, and master two supreme arts at once—dividing my attention without distraction."
It was an utterly mad idea! To drive his spiritual force to such an extreme was tantamount to waging an unprecedented battle within his own mind.
The risks were hundreds of times more terrifying than those of any martial art leading to cultivation deviation. The slightest lapse could shatter his mind. He would become a raving lunatic—or his consciousness would collapse entirely, leaving him a soulless living corpse, doomed beyond redemption.
But Lin Xuan had the resilient soul of someone who had lived two lives. He also had the heaven-defying Yin Yang Deficit Supplementation Technique, which could continually replenish his spiritual essence. He had nothing to fear.
His first step was to reverse the Soul Shifting Great Law and turn it upon himself. He gathered his consciousness into an indestructible blade, directing it deep into his own mind to dissect and control himself completely.
A silent, anguished scream burst deep within his soul, shaking every nerve!
Cold sweat instantly drenched him. Every muscle in his bare upper body trembled violently beyond his control, his veins standing out.
But he endured it!
Under the extreme force of the Soul Shifting Great Law, his mind reached an unprecedented state of focus and clarity, like a flawless mirror, revealing the finest details. He could clearly sense every trace of energy flowing through his body and the opening and closing of every acupoint. He could even "see" the absorption of the Yin Yang Deficit Supplementation Technique and the refinement of the Innate Technique unfolding together in his mind like two clear paintings, synchronized and undisturbed.
"Vmm—!"
The Yin Yang Deficit Supplementation Technique and the Innate Technique began operating within him simultaneously, with unprecedented efficiency, forming a perfect cycle!
Centered on the cold jade bed, an invisible vortex of energy suddenly formed!
Controlling both supreme arts, Lin Xuan was like an awakened ancient leviathan, opening its enormous maw to devour heaven and earth as he began to absorb energy at a frenzied pace.
The pure, extreme Yin chill stored within the thousand-year-old cold jade bed no longer seeped into him in faint trickles. Like water being sucked into a whale's mouth, it formed visible streams of blue-white energy, a huge vortex that poured madly into every pore of Lin Xuan's body!
The moment the energy entered him, Lin Xuan's mind drove the Innate Technique with all its might.
The golden vortex in his Dantian spun faster than ever, like a miniature black hole. It swallowed every trace of energy that poured in, then refined and purified it with overwhelming force, removing impurities and preserving the essence!
Absorb, refine!
Absorb, refine!
These two processes, which had once needed to be performed separately, now ran in perfect unison under Lin Xuan's absolute control. They formed an endless cycle of cultivation, with an efficiency dozens of times greater than before!
At that moment, Lin Xuan's body was like a perpetual-motion machine connected to an inexhaustible source of energy. It underwent a world-shaking transformation, advancing toward a higher realm.
Under the washing and expansion of that vast energy, his meridians became more than ten times tougher and wider than before! The qi that had once been a stream was now becoming a river, even a vast ocean—mighty and boundless!
His bones were repeatedly tempered by his qi, producing sharp cracks as their density increased. A faint jade-like sheen appeared on them, and they became indestructible.
His blood surged like flowing mercury. Every time it coursed through him, it rumbled like thunder, brimming with vigorous, pure life force.
His Dantian underwent the most complete transformation of all, and it was the very heart of his cultivation.
After refining an immense quantity of energy, the golden vortex of Innate Qi grew larger and brighter. At last, it reached the threshold of qualitative change—as though a fetus nurtured for ten thousand years were about to break free of its shell!
"Pop—"
A faint sound, like the birth of the universe, rang deep within his Dantian.
The golden vortex of qi abruptly collapsed inward. All its energy compressed to the utmost and finally coalesced into a mass of the purest Innate Qi!
This was the crucial sign that a martial artist had advanced beyond the acquired realm into the innate—and a milestone marking his true entry among the supreme masters!
At that moment, Lin Xuan's aura surged!
An invisible yet mighty presence instantly filled the stone chamber.
Lin Xuan opened his eyes, his expression neither joyful nor sorrowful.
He slowly rose from the cold jade bed.
He was still the same handsome, composed young man. But any supreme master who saw him now would be astonished to discover that he had become utterly different from before.
His aura blended perfectly with heaven and earth, and with the Ancient Tomb itself. He had reached the mystical state of "Unity of Heaven and Man."
Chapter Twelve: The Two Beauties Frozen
When Lin Xuan opened his eyes again, the air in the stone chamber seemed to freeze for an instant.
He slowly rose from the cold jade bed. The blazing, masculine aura that had once made Li Mochou tremble with fear had now been drawn completely inward. It no longer radiated outward, but seemed wrapped in warm jade, leaving only depth and richness, without the slightest hint of sharpness.
Before you continue