Xiao Li scrambled up from the ground in a sorry state, coughing up a mouthful of blood. His features were still handsome, but no matter how one looked at him, he resembled a homeless dog.
On the main street, passing martial artists all watched him with mocking eyes. Someone laughed. "Another Beneath the Skirt Minister abandoned by Silver Pool Madam."
"Pah! What Beneath the Skirt Minister? He's just a plaything on Silver Pool Madam's bed. A spineless man like this deserves to be beaten to death by Silver Pool Madam."
"Nothing but a dog raised by Silver Pool Madam!"
Xiao Li clenched his teeth tightly. Profound Qi surged through his body as he beat several martial artists who had mocked him until they were seriously injured, then tossed them into a filthy ditch.
He hated Ning Xiaochuan to the bone. Had Ning Xiaochuan not appeared, he would have rendered great service before Silver Pool Madam. Perhaps tonight, he might even have enjoyed the pleasures of fish and water with her.
At the same time, he hated Silver Pool Madam to the bone.
That woman had utterly ruined him, turning him into a dog—a male dog that served her.
Whenever she became angry, she would ruthlessly cast him aside without the slightest attachment.
She was a bitch.
A bitch any man could have!
"Silver Pool Madam, one day, I will make you kneel on the ground and lick my toes. I will make you, Silver Pool Madam, my slave."
Xiao Li knew that he was still far from being Silver Pool Madam's match. He could not even leave her anymore; her body had driven him mad with obsession. He decided to kill Ning Xiaochuan, then present Ning Xiaochuan's head to Silver Pool Madam. Perhaps then he could return to her side and be cherished by her once more.
With that thought, Xiao Li hurried toward the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall.
Inside the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall.
Ning Xiaochuan placed the blood-red Bloodstone Profound Grass back into its box.
Hiss!
The Bloodstone Profound Grass immediately turned into a pile of stone powder! In truth, Ning Xiaochuan had not transformed the Stone Grass back into Bloodstone Profound Grass. He had merely used the Blood Toad Wood energy inside his body to create an illusion.
Once the Stone Grass left Ning Xiaochuan's hand, it immediately turned into stone powder.
It could be said that this time had been quite perilous. In the contest between the two Heart Nourishing Halls, the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall had ultimately won by a narrow margin.
"Fortunately, Silver Pool Madam was in the middle of a rage and did not truly take that Stone Grass away. Otherwise, the trouble would have been enormous." Ning Xiaochuan let out a deep breath.
Yu Qianqian, however, seemed delighted. "Silver Pool Madam is a supreme martial artist, and she commands the power of an entire Marquis Mansion. Her ranks are filled with talented people and experts as numerous as clouds. Within Qi Tian Marquis's Mansion, she can cover the sky with one hand. A proud woman like her suffered such a great loss, so naturally she fled in disarray. How could she still care about a Fourth Grade Profound Medicine? Xiao Chuan, I must thank you this time. If not for you, the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall's reputation might not have survived."
Ning Xiaochuan said, "As a Heart Nourisher of the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall, receiving the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall's monthly salary, these are naturally things I ought to do."
The Sixth Deacon approached carrying a small box polished from ice jade and respectfully presented it to Yu Qianqian.
Yu Qianqian's jade-like fingers were slender. She passed the small box to Ning Xiaochuan and smiled gracefully. "Xiao Chuan, you have rendered great service to the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall this time. The Heart Nourishing Hall has decided to give you a reward."
Ning Xiaochuan had originally intended to refuse, but a subtle sensation suddenly arose in his heart. Thus, he accepted the small box and opened it.
Inside lay a pill the size of a soybean. It was round, lustrous, and crystalline, with wisps of Profound Qi flowing around it and releasing a rich fragrance.
Ning Xiaochuan merely took one breath of the Pill Qi, yet he felt the blood within his body accelerate, while the Martial Dao Profound Qi in his body circulated at high speed, emitting crackling explosions.
"An Intermediate Pill!" Ning Xiaochuan was overjoyed. He hurriedly closed the box and said, "Thank you for your reward, Princess!"
The value of an Intermediate Pill was exceedingly high, so Ning Xiaochuan naturally would not refuse it. To the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall, however, it was merely a drop in the ocean.
With this Intermediate Pill, breaking through to the Divine Body Realm was now just around the corner.
Once he reached the Divine Body Realm, Ning Xiaochuan would be able to refine Intermediate Pills himself.
Yu Qianqian was petite and exquisite, with bright eyes and pearly teeth, slender as a crescent moon. She said solemnly, "There is one more thing I must remind you of. Although Silver Pool Madam is beautiful and seductive, her reputation is terrible. Over the past ten-odd years, she has kept many male favorites, yet all of those male favorites died at her hands. You had best not come into contact with a woman like that. Once you do, she will ruin your future."
The image of that elegant and alluring woman surfaced in Ning Xiaochuan's mind again. She truly was a peerless enchantress; in terms of beauty, she was enough to stand shoulder to shoulder with Yu Qianqian. Yet her voluptuous, sensual figure could instantly crush a green little girl like Yu Qianqian, making her even more soul-hooking and irresistible.
If she truly wished to seduce a man, there were not many men in the world who could resist her temptation. Even Ning Xiaochuan was not confident that he could emerge unscathed from her allure.
The Sixth Deacon stood at a distance, watching Yu Qianqian and Ning Xiaochuan. Though both were only sixteen or seventeen, they displayed wisdom and composure far beyond their years.
Judging solely by the wisdom and methods they had used together against Silver Pool Madam today, they were even more formidable than those of the older generation. These two were destined to be extraordinary in the future.
Yu Qianqian said, "If you need any help in the future, you may come to the Great Golden Roc King Residence to find me at any time. There truly are not many matters in this world that the Great Golden Roc King Residence cannot resolve."
Ning Xiaochuan purchased a large quantity of Mysterious Medicine from the Golden Roc Heart Nourishing Hall, including Nourishing Heart Grass, Blood Accumulation Grass, Fracture Rejoining Bone Grass, and more. He now had six million three hundred thousand Small Coin on him, making him truly wealthy, so naturally he could purchase Mysterious Medicine in bulk.
After acquiring the Mysterious Medicine, Ning Xiaochuan drove the Azure Deer Carriage back toward Begonia Manor.
When the Azure Deer Carriage left the Imperial City, Ning Xiaochuan suddenly had it stop. "Friend, you have followed me all the way from the Imperial City to here. Aren't you tired?"
Bang!
A cold snort came from beneath the Azure Deer Carriage.
Xiao Li shot out from beneath the Azure Deer Carriage and threw a punch. The powerful Profound Qi around him smashed the entire Azure Deer Carriage apart.
Crash!
The coins in the carriage scattered across the ground.
The carriage itself split into pieces.
Ning Xiaochuan had leaped away a step earlier, avoiding Xiao Li's punch. He rapidly retreated into the distance and stared at the disheveled young man who had flown out from beneath the Azure Deer Carriage.
Was he not the handsome youth who had followed Silver Pool Madam?
Xiao Li gave Ning Xiaochuan a cold glance. "Your vigilance is quite high. When did you discover that I was hiding beneath the carriage?"
Ning Xiaochuan said, "Your cultivation is high enough to conceal yourself from my Heart Spirit Perception. Only after we left the Imperial City, when the killing intent in your heart became so intense that even you could no longer suppress it, did I sense someone hiding beneath the carriage. Did Silver Pool Madam send you to kill me?"
"I do not enjoy wasting so many words on a dead man like you." In Xiao Li's eyes, Ning Xiaochuan was already dead. A Profound Qi Sword condensed in his palm as he walked step by step toward Ning Xiaochuan.
Ning Xiaochuan felt a powerful oppressive force sweep over him. The entire space seemed to have solidified, making it exceptionally difficult for him to even move a finger.
This youth was certainly at the Divine Body Realm. He was absolutely no match for him now.
"Wait. Are you so certain you can kill me?" Ning Xiaochuan appeared extremely calm, without the slightest panic.
Xiao Li sneered. "You are merely at the Profound Qi Ninth Level, and you are even a Heart Nourisher. Do you think you still have any chance of surviving in my hands?"
The combat power of a Heart Nourisher at the Profound Qi Ninth Level was absolutely inferior to that of a martial artist at the Profound Qi Ninth Level.
Moreover, Xiao Li was at the first level of the Divine Body Realm. He was confident that killing a Heart Nourisher at the Profound Qi Ninth Level would be as easy as turning over his hand.
"I do not yet know your name. Even if you intend to kill me, you should at least let me die knowing why." Ning Xiaochuan knew he could not escape this calamity today, so he delayed for as long as possible. Perhaps some passing martial dao expert might save his life.
However, to his disappointment, his luck was poor today. No one came to save him.
"Xiao Li!"
Xiao Li stopped wasting words with Ning Xiaochuan. His sword Qi slashed diagonally out, its sword light like lightning as it instantly reached Ning Xiaochuan's neck.
Since no one was coming to save him, he could only save himself.
At the instant Xiao Li drew his sword, Ning Xiaochuan circulated the Profound Qi within his body, condensed a layer of Profound Fortification Protective Shield, turned, and fled.
Bang!
The sword Qi struck the Profound Fortification Protective Shield on Ning Xiaochuan's back, shattering it and leaving a bloody wound across his back.
Borrowing the force of that impact, Ning Xiaochuan shot forward five zhang.
Xiao Li had thought that this sword strike would sever Ning Xiaochuan's head. He had not expected the Profound Fortification Protective Shield of a Heart Nourisher at the Profound Qi Ninth Level to be so strong. After taking a sword strike from a Divine Body Realm martial artist, Ning Xiaochuan had merely been injured.
He did not know that although Ning Xiaochuan was a Heart Nourisher, his combat strength was no weaker than that of martial artists at the same level. On the contrary, because he possessed the Seven Aperture God-Demon Heart Palace, he was nearly invincible among those of the same realm.
By the time Xiao Li reacted, Ning Xiaochuan had already fled more than ten zhang away.
"You run quickly enough. Unfortunately, today you will certainly die." Xiao Li released a long howl, then rapidly pursued Ning Xiaochuan. He was far faster than Ning Xiaochuan.