"Boom..."
The Quchi Acupoint of the Hand Yangming Large Intestine Meridian burst open.
A powerful, vast surge of vital essence emerged, as though a tiny pond had opened at his elbow.
Lu Wu-bing felt the strength throughout his body increase a little more.
At the same time, the inner qi circulating through his two meridians and Dantian grew much more robust.
Most strangely of all, he found that his eyes seemed to have become considerably brighter.
The surrounding scenery appeared clearer, as if it had gained a few more vivid colors.
He knew this was the evolution brought to the human body when inner force opened up the meridians.
Once the Hand Shaoyin Heart Meridian was opened, it could calm the mind and invigorate thought.
The Hand Yangming Large Intestine Meridian governed appetite and digestion, while enhancing the five senses.
It had not even been fully opened yet, and the benefits were already showing.
Of course, it was not entirely without drawbacks...
With the immense medicinal power of the wild mountain ginseng, he had consecutively opened six acupoints, bringing the Hand Yangming Large Intestine Meridian to eleven opened acupoints. Then he discovered a faint phantom pain in the qi channels of his arm.
It felt swollen, sore, and numb, as though it were being torn apart.
It might have been an illusion.
Yet it truly affected both his mind and body.
Moreover, this phantom pain could not be dispelled in a short time.
He would have to wait until his body gradually adapted and his meridians stabilized before opening more acupoints and expanding his channels again.
"No wonder Senior Sister Xiaolan said the Celestial Star Sect's [Dripping Water Force] was merely the foundation for beginners. No matter how much one wanted speed, there was only so fast one could go.
"The thickness of the meridians was already predetermined, as were the speed of nurturing and gathering qi...
"After all, this cultivation method pursued a slow, steady stream—making sure nothing went wrong."
"The Celestial River Orthodox Method... the sooner I can get my hands on it, the better.
"I heard this method can expand the meridians severalfold, refining the qi channels into long rivers and inner qi into rolling tides...
"Not only does cultivation become unstoppable, like splitting bamboo; in battle, it can also crush dry weeds and rotten wood. It is famed for its weighty power and immense strength."
At that thought, Lu Wu-bing's heart nearly flew all the way to Celestial Star Peak.
"Then I'll deal with those so-called Three Heroes of Chaoyang as soon as possible and set out on my journey."
He looked at the sky. The sun had set, the moon had risen, and the night birds had returned to their nests. When he finished his cultivation and stood, he found Senior Sister Xiaolan and Gu Dashi already waiting quietly.
Ouyang Lan carried a longsword on her back, her clothes tightly bound and neat. She looked valiant and spirited, with a faint trace of Killing Intent in her eyes.
Gu Dashi's eyes were bloodshot, like a volcano on the verge of eruption.
He held a great bow in his hand, veins bulging along his arms. With a quiver on his back, he breathed somewhat heavily.
"We've been waiting for you for quite a while."
There was a trace of sourness in Ouyang Lan's voice.
She was terribly envious.
When she cultivated inner force, half an hour of meditation was enough to leave her thoughts in turmoil and her spirit exhausted, wanting only to collapse without moving.
Yet on his very first attempt at cultivating inner force, her junior brother had already lasted a full hour.
Now this was even more outrageous—he had cultivated for an hour and a half.
When he finished, he was still glowing with energy, clearly with strength to spare.
During this time, his spiritual power had likely condensed and strengthened considerably once more.
That was what Ouyang Lan thought.
Daoist cultivation emphasized the unity of body and soul, cultivating both the body and the soul.
But martial artists in today's jianghu basically cultivated only inner qi, at most practicing external and internal arts together.
There truly was no cultivation method that could directly cultivate the soul.
Even the Celestial Star Sect had none.
Still, some great masters of the older generation had practiced it. Upon reaching the Innate Realm, once one's martial will had condensed, no matter which cultivation method one had used as a foundation, one could begin to touch upon the cultivation of soul and spirit.
Naturally, Ouyang Lan knew this.
And for that very reason, she found Lu Wu-bing's growth in spiritual power especially astonishing.
"Are your meridians swelling with pain?"
"Exactly. This tonic isn't easy to take, either. My initial estimate is that after opening six acupoints, I'll need three days of rest."
Lu Wu-bing spoke dejectedly.
"Six... six acupoints..."
Ouyang Lan's eyebrows twitched slightly. She thought, I've only opened four acupoints. Little Junior Brother, why are you so outstanding?
They had both taken a small slice of ginseng.
Where did all my medicinal power go?
She blinked hard and decided not to bring up cultivation with her junior brother for the time being.
If I do, I'm a dog.
Better to think about how to kill the bandits.
"When I delivered grain, I once went to the stronghold and deliberately noted the positions of all their sentries."
Gu Dashi said coldly. He shook the great bow in his hand and added, "Back then, the Chen brothers entered my household as disciples because they wanted to learn the Willow-Piercing Archery Art... I excel at long-range attacks, so leave the sentries to me."
"Good. Before news of Chen Gong and the others' deaths reaches Chaoyang Stronghold, we'll leave the task of luring the enemy ahead entirely to Brother Gu."
This had been the plan they had agreed upon beforehand.
Chaoyang Stronghold was located on Chaoyang Ridge of Hengshan. The cliffs were steep, and only a single path led to the summit. The road was extremely difficult to traverse.
Furthermore, its second chief, Ge Zhong, had come from the army and understood troop discipline and defensive deployments. He guarded that mountain path as tightly as a sealed iron bucket.
It was not impossible to force their way up and kill their way through.
But doing so would not only add unnecessary risk, it might also provoke the fierce men on the mountain.
If the enemy realized their side was too powerful and decided to kill people to vent their rage, that would be troublesome.
Quite a few women were bound on the mountain, and they were all innocent.
Most importantly, San Niang and Er Gou, who had gone out to gather wild vegetables, had also been captured by the bandits.
To force the divine-archer hunter Gu Dashi into joining them, they had used every method imaginable.
"Don't worry. So long as Chen San-yang and Ge Zhong do not truly feel threatened, they won't cruelly harm your wife and son ahead of time."
This was based on human nature.
Given Chaoyang Stronghold's fearsome prestige and Chen San-yang's high opinion of himself, once Gu Dashi harassed them with arrows, his first thought would be to capture him personally and torture him viciously.
Then ask why, when he had taught them their skills back then, he had been so strict.
The Chen brothers' miserable childhoods and inferiority during their youth had already turned into vicious wolves gnawing at their hearts.
They ran rampant, cruel and ruthless.
In the end, they had chosen to establish their stronghold on Chaoyang Peak of Hengshan, not far from Gu Family Village.
The meaning behind it was obvious.
Where they had fallen, they wanted to rise again.
Even more, they wanted to see the familiar villagers crawling at their feet.
Perhaps they had not even realized it themselves.
Deep in their hearts, what they wanted was not merely to hold their heads high and run wild as they pleased. They also wanted to gain someone's genuine approval.
They wanted to say before Gu Dashi, "You were wrong."
"Do you regret it?"
Perhaps what Chen San-yang most wanted to see was Gu Dashi kneeling and begging for mercy.
And then, before his eyes, kill his son and take his wife.
That was the course of thought Lu Wu-bing had inferred for Chen San-yang, the chief, after hearing Gu Dashi's story.
And Chen Gong.
Senior Sister Xiaolan's Rainstorm Pear Blossom Needle had turned him into a honeycomb at the first opportunity, so there was nothing more to say about him.
"Pfft..."
The night was cool as water, and the mountain wind howled.
A long arrow with white fletching swept through the hazy mist and pierced the throat of a stronghold sentry.
From afar, the man clutched his neck and toppled headfirst from his post.
Before he even hit the ground...
On a watchtower seven or eight zhang away, another bandit was already clutching his throat and making a gurgling cry.
"As expected of a divine archer who can pierce willows at a hundred paces."
Lu Wu-bing and Ouyang Lan hid behind the side of a large tree, quietly watching through the branches.
They watched the night sentries in the stronghold fall one by one, saw large patches of torchlight flare up, and heard furious roars erupt from within the stronghold.
Very soon, a burly man carrying a massive staff, his physique as imposing as a bear, leaped down from the stronghold wall bare-chested.
The long staff in his hands whirled rapidly, smashing an incoming arrow to pieces with a single blow.
His muscles gleamed with reflected oil-light, like iron armor.
Behind the leading burly man came another figure, clad in silver armor and dragging a silver spear behind him. His aura was cold and sinister, and he followed close behind like a venomous snake.
"It was much easier than I imagined."
Lu Wu-bing drew a deep breath. The plan to lure the snake from its hole had worked unexpectedly well.
He did not know whether the two men were overly confident or simply accustomed to arrogant recklessness.
They had actually taken no precautions whatsoever.
"They're also much stronger than I imagined."
Ouyang Lan, however, grew slightly tense.
She had encountered more people of the jianghu and naturally had her own methods for judging strength.
"External hardening Golden Thread Armor, Sixth Rank Marrow Cleansing Realm, divine strength of a thousand jin."
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