Cleansing the Meridians and Marrow, Primordial Qi Entering the Meridians

Gan Jiang, Mo Ye, Chunjun, Zhanlu, Yuchang, Gelu, Juque, Xuanyuan, Longquan, Taie, the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, the Painted Halberd...

One divine weapon after another radiated brilliant golden light within the system, proclaiming their rank.

Their forms were worthy of works of art, their delicate patterns perfect to the last detail, and each weapon contained a certain special aura. Zhao Cheng watched them with burning envy.

The Painted Halberd and the Green Dragon Crescent Blade most of all!

The more he looked, the more they suited his tastes. He wished he could forge them right away and wield them to his heart's content.

But forging a divine weapon cost a hundred thousand years of life. He hadn't accumulated enough, so all he could do was admire the weapons' details through the system and gaze at plums to quench his thirst.

"The Painted Halberd..."

The Painted Halberd had three points and two edges, its shaft like a dragon and its socket like a tiger.

Its crescent-shaped, icy blade bore flowing-cloud patterns, with starbursts inlaid beneath the surface. Sunlight turned it gold with flowing radiance, while moonlight gathered on it like frost.

A snow-white tassel looped around its collar. A steel dragon's spine ran through its core, its surface carved with a thousand overlapping waves, and its butt ended in a black-gold tiger's head.

The whole weapon measured one zhang and two chi. Held upright, it was like a pillar propping up the sky; held crosswise, it was like the Milky Way fallen upon the wilderness.

Truly, it had an iron spine and a frosty bearing—a work of divine craftsmanship!

Then there was the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, like a setting sun beneath a crescent moon, its dragon's head propping up the sky!

Its blade was like a great moon stretched across the heavens, its edge thin as frost, with blue light rippling across it in the glow.

The head of the blade resembled a coiling dragon raising its head, its horns supporting the sky. A pearl rested in its socket, faint arcs of light appearing within it like clouds and thunder.

The shaft was engraved all over with a blue dragon soaring through clouds. Its guard was an eight-petaled golden lotus, gilded and inlaid with jade; the pommel was shaped like a dragon's tail hooked backward, so it could be planted in the ground like a stake.

The whole weapon measured nine chi and five cun. Swept sideways, it was like a blue dragon lashing its tail; brought down vertically, it was like Mount Tai crashing upon one's head.

Truly, it commanded the world and swallowed ten thousand miles of air!

Zhao Cheng watched, his heart aching with resentment. How could it be so expensive!?

He couldn't even afford a halberd that cost ten thousand years of life. When would he ever be able to forge a Painted Halberd that cost a hundred thousand?

He gazed at the moon and let out a long sigh, then simply stopped looking.

After considering it, he decided he would spend a thousand years of life later to exchange for a Precision Cast Great Halberd, which he could use to charge into the enemy and smash through their ranks.

With his domineering strength, this kind of weapon suited him perfectly.

With a Great Halberd in hand, he would be even more unstoppable amid the ranks of an army. With a single sweep, he could break through a thousand troops!

"Unfortunately, in the current situation, a Great Halberd would be too conspicuous. It wouldn't be convenient to carry around or use in combat within the city, so I'll hold off on forging one."

"Besides, most of the fighting right now is siege warfare, and there aren't many chances for two armies to charge into each other's ranks. A sword really is more convenient."

"Then when we take the city tomorrow, I'll exchange for a Precision Cast Longsword first."

As he thought this, Zhao Cheng opened the system's Life Span Pill Condensation function, checked the Marrow Cleansing Pill, and chose to condense one.

[Ten thousand years of life consumed. Marrow Cleansing Pill successfully condensed! Claim it now?]

"Claim it."

A pill exuding an utterly enchanting fragrance fell into Zhao Cheng's hand. It hardly looked like a pill at all, but more like a crystalline jade sphere.

Zhao Cheng didn't take time to admire it. He tossed the Marrow Cleansing Pill straight into his mouth and swallowed it.

The pill melted as soon as it touched his tongue. In the blink of an eye, it turned into wisps of coolness that seeped into Zhao Cheng's every limb and bone.

Then, deep in many of the meridians and bones throughout Zhao Cheng's body, an intense, unbearable itch began to spread.

The sensation was agonizing, yet at the same time, boundless comfort reached the depths of his soul. Zhao Cheng clenched his fists and gritted his teeth to keep himself from making a certain sound.

As the medicinal power spread, Zhao Cheng's body underwent an earth-shattering transformation.

The small section of meridian he had accidentally opened before began to widen rapidly.

It was like solid ice encountering warm sunlight, beginning to melt.

It grew from half the size of a fingernail to a full fingernail's breadth in just a few breaths.

Then the opening began to spread along the meridians, extending up and down from the center of his chest and abdomen.

Every section that opened drew vast amounts of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi into it.

The Primordial Qi that had once filled an entire arm could now be stored in a stretch of meridian only as long as a finger.

The cleansing and opening accelerated, taking place throughout his body at once.

Every meridian began to loosen, then gradually opened a section and started spreading in both directions.

Whenever a meridian opened, vast amounts of Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi stored in that part of his body surged into it, filling the channel.

By the time the meridians in Zhao Cheng's chest and abdomen had opened completely, the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi throughout his body had flowed into the various meridians. Not a trace remained stored elsewhere in his body.

Before long, the large meridians in his chest and abdomen began to connect with those in other parts of his body.

At that moment, an incomparably smooth sensation swept over him. It was like years' worth of silt being flushed away, or a stuffy nose from a lingering cold suddenly beginning to clear.

Large amounts of impurities and dregs began to leave Zhao Cheng's body through his skin, carried out by his breathing and the flow of Primordial Qi.

Even his bones seemed to be expelling something. The agony and comfort were beyond words; Zhao Cheng even wanted to pry open his bones and rub his own marrow.

The Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi throughout his body seemed to have been released from some kind of restraint. It surged joyfully back and forth through his meridians, tempering them while refining his body.

Zhao Cheng's meridians grew ever stronger and wider, while the Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi within them was continuously refined. The change was slight, however—almost imperceptible...

While Zhao Cheng cleansed his meridians and marrow, shedding his old body for a new one,

in Ye County, the defending general, Han Jiang, listened to his subordinate's report. His vision went black, and he pitched straight toward the ground.

"General!"

His men hurried forward and caught Han Jiang before he could crack his skull open.

Even so, Han Jiang was still dizzy and lightheaded. The world spun before his eyes, and darkness flickered across his vision.

A breath of bitter frustration lodged in his chest. He couldn't spit it out, nor could he swallow it!

His face turned ashen. Trembling, he pointed at Wen Mao and opened his mouth wide, but not a single word came out.

"General, please calm your anger!"

Wen Mao knelt on the ground, his eyes red. He felt wronged too. That damned man wasn't some kind of spy—he was a fiend!

"The Qin Army must have used some kind of sorcery. I suspect it could have been one of those legendary Fangshi, or some strange Incantation Technique!"

"At first, when Du Shuang's subordinates fled and told us that the man was impervious to blades and spears, water and fire, we didn't believe them. Then, after a chaotic battle, nearly two thousand of us surrounded him in a small alley."

"Our soldiers charged forward with courage, falling one after another. None of them retreated, but we still couldn't take down that vicious man."

"At first, I thought he merely had incredible stamina and peerless swordsmanship. But in less than the time it takes to eat a meal, my men grew fewer and fewer. In no time at all, he had killed nearly a thousand of them!"

"Even after we'd suffered more than half our casualties, my men didn't retreat. But that man was so strange that they'd already lost their will to fight."

"If we hadn't come back, our whole army might have been wiped out!"

Wen Mao's face was grief-stricken. He spoke with heartfelt sincerity.

But as Han Jiang listened, his face suddenly flushed red. He spat out a mouthful of blood!

After spitting it out, he finally felt better. A rush of breath surged through him, and he immediately roared in fury.

"Behead him for me!!"

"Behead him!!"

Wen Mao's expression grew complicated. Remembering what he'd said earlier when facing the fleeing soldiers, he couldn't help but smile bitterly.

So that was how it was.

It wasn't that I didn't believe him.

The general didn't believe him either!

So be it. Dead sooner or later—what difference did it make?

With that fiend around, Ye City would surely fall before long. When the Qin Army entered the city, they wouldn't spare him either.

It was just a pity that he wouldn't die on the battlefield, killing the enemy, but in a situation like this instead.

As the longsword fell, Wen Mao suddenly smiled.

Heh, he'd be joining Du Shuang down below. At least they'd have each other for company.

He'd have to apologize to him, too. He'd misunderstood him earlier. If Du Shuang had been a cowardly general, then he himself was even more of one.

Oh, once the general came down, would he apologize to him, too, and say he'd misunderstood him?

Shhk!

His head flew through the air.

Wen Mao was charged with dereliction of duty and disturbing the morale of the troops.

He died atop the city wall, before the battle lines.

A warning to others.

Watching Wen Mao fall, Han Jiang felt all strength leave his body. He slumped beneath the battlements and weakly waved a hand.

"Send someone else to lead the troops. Go to the Government Office and see how much of the grain and provisions can still be saved."

There was no grief greater than a heart dead within.

His heart was now cold and lifeless. He almost wished he could open the city gates right then and let the Qin Army in, so he could die alongside this pack of good-for-nothings.

Leading this rabble into battle was worse than surrendering!

Before the time it takes to eat a meal had passed, a rider suddenly came galloping back in haste.

The rider was beaming. Before he even reached the city, he shouted the good news.

"General, wonderful news!"

Han Jiang raised his eyelids listlessly. Things had come to this—what good news could there possibly be?

But the messenger dismounted and said with excitement, "That Qin Army spy is as stupid as a pig! He couldn't tell the county seat from the granaries, and hurriedly burned only the county seat before leaving. The granaries and provisions are completely unharmed!"

At those words, Han Jiang, who had been slumped limply on the ground, sprang up as if injected with chicken blood. His eyes lit up, too.

"Ha!"

He laughed aloud, then couldn't contain his elation and kept laughing. "Hahahahaha!"

"What a stupid pig of a spy! He couldn't even tell the granaries from the county seat. He must have panicked when he saw our troops surrounding him, hurriedly burned the county seat, and fled."

"Such an idiot, and yet he managed to make Wen Mao and Du Shuang return in defeat? That shows just how useless those two were!"

Laughing, Han Jiang entered the crude watchtower and invited the subordinate who'd brought the news inside as well.

Once inside, the rider hesitated, as if wanting to speak.

After Han Jiang prompted him with a look, he finally said, "General, we inspected the battlefield in the city. Our casualties really were severe. Along the way, every corpse struck by an arrow had been shot through the throat with a single arrow."

"And in the deep alley in the western part of the city, our soldiers' bodies were piled into a mountain, and blood had flowed like a river. Every dead man had been decapitated with a single sword strike, and none had a second wound."

"Judging by the traces on the battlefield, there really was only one enemy."

"This man is truly terrifying. It seems there may be some truth to General Wen Mao's account."

"Your subordinate believes this man's martial prowess is extraordinary. General, you must be extremely cautious."

The more he said, the graver Han Jiang's expression became.

As a defending general, and one temporarily dispatched to defend Ye County at that, he wasn't stupid. He knew perfectly well that the enemy spy's martial prowess was extraordinary.

But he couldn't accept that Du Shuang and Wen Mao had commanded a combined force of more than three thousand troops and still failed to capture a single enemy spy.

Nor could he let them disturb the morale of the troops. If he hadn't executed Wen Mao, morale would have fallen into even greater disarray, and that would have been a far bigger problem.

Han Jiang sighed. "Of course I know..."

"This man's archery is divine. He fought alone in four separate places, breaking through encirclements and launching guerrilla attacks for a long time without tiring. He even slipped into the Government Office, killed the County Commandant, burned the county seat, and terrified Du Shuang's unit. His martial prowess is clearly extraordinary."

"But no matter how strong a warrior is, he can still be killed by a powerful army surrounding him."

"Faced with such a vicious man, Wen Mao chose to fight in a Dark Alley. How careless and foolish was that?"

"The alley was dim, and he couldn't grasp the situation on the battlefield or make adjustments in time. His subordinates had suffered more than half their casualties before he even realized what was happening."

"Besides, the alley was narrow, a place where one man could hold the pass against ten thousand. With that fiend's courage, he was naturally even better suited to fighting somewhere like that."

"Wen Mao brought two thousand troops, but in that place they couldn't use even a tenth of their strength. He suffered such a crushing defeat—was he not supposed to be executed?"

"They were all men I trained. I may not know everything about their abilities, but I at least know them well enough."

"If he'd been an ordinary spy, how could they have failed to capture him?"

Han Jiang sighed again. "Forget it. The provisions are still safe. That's already a blessing."

"Search the whole city tonight. While he's exhausted, find him and kill him. We can't let him pass the city's intelligence along, much less let him stir up more chaos."

"Fortunately, that man is brave but short on wits. He couldn't even burn the right place, so he won't be able to accomplish much..."