Refine Taisui, Shedding Mortal Body and Exchanging Skeletons

I went into the mountains to gather some medicinal materials to sell in the city, but I fainted from hunger before I could even reach a shop.

"Let me see your medicinal materials."

Lu Yuan helped sort out the medicinal materials in the basket, only to find they were all the most common and ordinary kinds. He calculated they would sell for fifty wen.

Seeing his miserable state, Lu Yuan's heart softened. He calculated them as two hundred wen, moving the man to the point where he almost knelt down to thank him.

"Eldest Brother, where did you get this stone?"

Lu Yuan asked casually.

The man replied, "Oh, this stone? I found it by the stream when I came. I thought it was pretty, so I picked it up to take home for the kids."

"I like it very much. Can you sell it to me?"

"No, no, no, how could I sell it to you? Just take it."

"No, I'm a person who never takes advantage of others. As long as I like something, I'm willing to pay any price. Let's not waste time, this amount..."

"One... one tael?"

The man hesitated.

Lu Yuan pulled him into the inner hall of the shop and said in a low voice, "One hundred taels!"

"What? One hundred taels?"

The man stammered, disbelieving, "This broken stone is worth one hundred taels?"

Lu Yuan shook his head, "This stone is just an ordinary stone, of course it's not worth one hundred taels. But a thousand pieces of gold can't buy my liking."

Saying that, Lu Yuan gave the man one hundred taels without allowing him to refuse. "Remember, don't tell anyone I gave you one hundred taels."

The man held the silver, looking troubled, and mumbled, "This... this money feels hot in my hands... You... you must be pitying me."

Lu Yuan smiled, "If not for yourself, then consider the children."

The man thanked him repeatedly. As he reached the door, he suddenly knelt and kowtowed three times. "Thank you, you are a good person. You will surely live a long life."

Lu Yuan stood there, unsure whether to laugh or cry.

Isn't wishing someone a long life a curse?

Finally, evening arrived. Lu Yuan couldn't wait a moment longer. He ran home as fast as he could, locked the door, and carefully took out the fist-sized stone.

"Could this be a Taisui Stone? Otherwise, why would the Taisui Dao Seed react?"

The stone was indeed quite beautiful, round and sparkling.

He looked left and right, up and down. The stone looked like an ordinary stone no matter how he looked at it. Even when he took out the 'Taisui Dao Seed' and placed it next to the stone, there was still no reaction.

"Young Master, Master is calling you for dinner."

"Alright, I'm coming."

Lu Yuan regretfully put away the 'Taisui Dao Seed' and found a box to store the stone. As he picked up the stone and passed it under the light, he paused. His eyes widened. He placed the stone in the light and leaned closer. Under the illumination, it seemed something was encased within the stone.

He hesitated, then gritted his teeth and crushed the stone. Prying open the fragments, he found a seed the size of a soybean, emerald green and glistening.

Lu Yuan was stunned.

A seed-like object was encased within a stone?

Why would this thing cause the 'Taisui Dao Seed' to tremble?

"Let's see what reaction the Taisui Dao Seed has now."

Lu Yuan took out the Dao Seed again and placed the green seed on it.

Buzz~~

Under Lu Yuan's gaze, the green seed transformed into a green light and merged into the 'Taisui Dao Seed'.

With a thought, his status panel popped up:

[Great Dao Seed: Taisui Dao Seed (Refining (20%))]

Lu Yuan's pores opened wide, his spirit felt full, as if immortal light was purifying him, bringing immense comfort to his mind and body.

It felt like soaking in a hot spring. Every part of his body vibrated, all his pores opened, greedily devouring the Primordial Qi of heaven and earth.

Lu Yuan felt an astonishing change occurring within him. His heartbeat grew stronger, like a drumbeat. A warm current flowed clearly and rapidly through his limbs and bones, tempering his flesh and sinews.

Without needing to test, Lu Yuan knew his physique was greatly enhancing, as if he had undergone a Shedding Mortal Body and Exchanging Skeletons. Abundant strength surged within him.

Furthermore, his physique was still improving, as if baptized by immortal light, his flesh and blood singing in harmony.

At this moment, his flesh became increasingly firm, his internal organs crystal clear. If one were to peel back his skin, they would see his bones were flawless white, as if cast from white jade.

Bang bang bang!!

Lu Yuan heard his heart beating violently, resonating again and again, sending blood surging throughout his body.

Metamorphosis.

It was still ongoing.

The door was pushed open. Lu Longjing glanced at the motionless Lu Yuan, then gently closed the door, issuing a stern order: "No one is allowed to approach the second young master's courtyard!"

From evening to day, Lu Yuan remained like a sculpture, his eyes not even opening.

"Hoo~~"

Lu Yuan's eyes snapped open, and he clearly felt the changes within his mind.

From limbs to torso, from skin and flesh to tendons and bones, from internal organs to viscera, he had undergone a great shedding of mortal body and exchange of skeletons.

Absorb Heaven Shaking Lion's Strength, Contain Earth Shaking Pixiu's Might.

What kind of divine ability was this?

And Gu Zheng had already activated one-fifth of it.

Divine abilities were etched into the depths of the soul. Once activated, they would nourish the physical body.

In just one night, Gu Zheng's body had undergone earth-shattering changes.

This was different from martial arts, which required day-after-day tempering, practicing in the hottest summer days and coldest winter days. Divine abilities originated from the soul; once activated, they were perfectly integrated.

There was no need to spend time mastering them; one naturally grasped this power.

Lu Yuan didn't know how immense the power would be upon fully activating the divine ability, but he felt incredibly powerful now. He felt as if everything before him had become fragile, breakable with a casual touch.

He felt he could shoulder mountains and shatter the ground with a single kick.

It was as if he was filled with an unquenchable frustration at the heavens and earth.

At this moment, purely based on his physique, his arms could unleash ten thousand jin of force with a mere swing.

It was important to note that even a martial artist with Blood Qi Like an Ox could only muster a few thousand jin of force with a swing of their arms.

And that was with the amplification of their blood qi.

He ran to the kitchen and filled the water vat. With almost no effort, he lifted the water vat, which weighed over a thousand jin when full, with ease and natural grace.

The surge of power startled Lu Yuan. He was now a true behemoth.

Next, he tested his speed. The improvement was far less significant than his strength.

However, his hearing, vision, and other senses had greatly improved. He could see a fly's wings flapping a hundred meters away, discern the patterns on the fly's body, and even faintly hear its buzzing.

Of course, this required him to focus his attention.

If his hearing were constantly this acute, it would be torture.

Having senses that were too sharp was also a significant trouble. There was too much useless noise around him; any slight disturbance would be detected.

"With my current strength, I probably won't find an opponent in Lingbao County."

Lu Yuan's confidence swelled, and he even felt an urge to rush to Iron Dragon Stockade and take Yi Zheng's head right then and there.

Fortunately, he still had his reason.

Thinking that his True Essence Blood Refining Pills were almost used up, he knew it was time to make money.

This was his third time entering the Ghost Market, and he was already familiar with the route.

Lu Yuan changed his disguise again and set up a stall in the Ghost Market. In less than ten minutes, just as someone was asking about the price, a person wearing a faceless mask walked over and spoke in a familiar voice, "Brother Zhang, do you remember me? It's Li Mu."