"Raiden Shogun... Nijika... Index..."
"Tifa... Yuffie... Ada Wong..."
"Pleasant Goat... Blue Rabbit... My Little Pony..."
"Makima... Rem... Mother of Ultra..."
It seemed the Tiger-Wolf Pill did more than accelerate blood flow. It also had a hallucinogenic effect.
Countless visions appeared before Ye Li's eyes.
At first, they were only afterimages, but half an hour later, Ye Li could feel them growing more real.
No wonder Feng Yue had said it could temper the will. It turned out the pill also tested one's heart against the temptations of the mortal world.
Ye Li felt his anime wives beckoning to him, from humans to furries, from the West to Japan and Korea.
Every last one of his tastes was clamoring for attention!
At this rate, he might truly drown in fantasy!
"These wicked illusions think they can tempt me by disguising themselves as anime girls?!!!"
"Tch. Who do they think they're dealing with? What martial artist couldn't withstand a test like this?"
Ye Li forced down the surge of Qi and blood and resolved to fight these illusions!
Since the visions wanted to ensnare him, he would counter poison with poison by thinking about some adult realities.
He would use reality to tear through the fog of illusion!
At that thought, his mind raced.
"An astronomical bride price!"
Boom—
The moment that thought arose, Ye Li's head cleared. His anime wives from everyday-life settings shattered in an instant!
"Reproductive isolation!"
Whoosh—
With that thought, Blue Rabbit, Pleasant Goat, and My Little Pony faded from sight!
Just two thoughts were enough.
Ye Li felt as though someone had dumped a basin of cold water over his head. His mind snapped awake.
Encouraged, he unleashed a flurry of thoughts to slaughter the illusions!
.........
.........
.........
Pain! Too much pain!
By summoning those great terrors, Ye Li instantly doused the desire that had been stirring within him. His will grew as still and barren as an old monk's!
Once he had broken through the illusion, Ye Li turned his attention back to guiding his Qi and blood.
The Dragon Tiger Pill truly lived up to its reputation as something made specifically for Body Tempering martial artists.
Even with the strength of his bloodline, he could feel his blood roaring through him like the Yangtze River.
He could even feel some of his finer capillaries nearing the point of rupture. His face flushed deep red, and he had the faint sensation of blood seeping from his pores.
If he had not broken through to the Body Tempering Realm and formed a Qi-Blood Network across his skin to keep his blood firmly contained, the Dragon Tiger Pill would have been a deadly poison rather than a powerful tonic.
"Huh..."
Feng Yue hesitated as he watched Ye Li cultivate with a face as still as an ancient well.
"A moment ago, the kid looked ready to lose himself. How did he calm down so suddenly? Strange..."
To Lu Xiuyuan, however, Ye Li's composure was irritating enough to make him curl his lip.
That display of iron will made it look as though he was weak-minded.
"Keep holding it in, then. Let's see how many days you last. You really think you can sit with temptation in your arms and feel nothing?"
With that thought, Lu Xiuyuan stepped around Ye Li and headed out.
Feng Yue glanced sideways at Lu Xiuyuan and chuckled inwardly!
The meeting between two gifted young men of the same generation had hardly been an accident.
By breaking through to Body Tempering so quickly, Ye Li had naturally caught the gang's attention.
But Lu Xiuyuan, with his Blue Trait, had already set the standard for their generation, making the question of what to do with Ye Li rather awkward.
The gang had no shortage of factions, and their opinions varied wildly!
Some wanted to devote their resources to Lu Xiuyuan first, then allocate resources to Ye Li once Lu Xiuyuan broke through to the Post-Heaven Realm.
Other elders argued that although Ye Li had only a green trait, his talent was clearly greater!
Devoting their full resources to Ye Li now and having him represent the gang in the grand tournament six months later was the best strategy!
Ye Li had yet to meet the leadership, but behind the scenes, elders had already argued themselves red in the face over the two of them.
After all, Ye Li's talent was undeniable. His background was clean, and more importantly, he had no faction behind him.
Aside from the few elders who had already backed Lu Xiuyuan,
every other faction was vying for him, openly or covertly. They simply had no intention of telling Ye Li before a decision was reached.
After a fierce debate, the gang leader settled the matter with a single word.
Feng Yue would first arrange a meeting between Ye Li and Lu Xiuyuan. Though Lu Xiuyuan had a Blue Trait, his laid-back nature needed honing!
A little pressure from each other would do them both good. Ye Li was now under evaluation; if he proved himself capable, the gang leader would train him personally!
As the Azure Dragon Gang's strongest fighter in the public eye, the gang leader's decision ended the debate, and everything was arranged in orderly fashion.
That was how this meeting had come about.
Meanwhile, Ye Li remained seated on the ground.
Despite Niu Da, his expression was as still as an ancient well. Like an old monk deep in meditation, he showed not the slightest disturbance.
As time passed, the flush brought on by the Dragon Tiger Pill gradually faded from his face. Only after a long while, when his Qi and blood had settled completely, did he slowly open his eyes.
Realm: Early Body Tempering (25+6/1835) Azure Dragon Force (1862/100)
Looking at the numbers on the panel, Ye Li could only marvel.
The Dragon Tiger Pill's effects were terrifying indeed!
Cultivating with it had been an ordeal, and he had nearly failed to withstand it, but ordinary training could not compare to its results.
In just two hours, Ye Li had gained six experience points—three times the usual amount.
After his breakthrough to the Body Tempering Realm, an hour of cultivation still earned him one experience point.
But a Body-Tempering Pill now gave him only half as much as before: twenty experience points per pill.
That meant filling the remaining 1,835 points and reaching mid-stage Body Tempering would take ninety Body-Tempering Pills.
The Dragon Tiger Pill, a hundred times cheaper, would take only three hundred pills. That was a mere three hundred bouts with Niu Da!
Ye Li turned his head. There was no longer any resistance in his expression as he asked,
"How many Dragon Tiger Pills can I take in a day without harming my body?"
"You want more?" Feng Yue looked at him strangely.
"Obviously. The gang gives out Dragon Tiger Pills for free. Why wouldn't I take something free?"
Having felt the benefits of Niu Da, Ye Li had changed his tune completely. Not a trace remained of his earlier disgust.
"Suit yourself." It was Feng Yue's first time seeing a disciple ask to take more, and he pursed his lips. "Stop when you feel you can't contain the blood surging through your veins. At the early stage, the limit is usually around three pills, though you can take them alongside Body Tempering Pills."
"Three?" Ye Li nodded to himself. "All right, got it. Give me a dozen or so to keep on hand!"
Feng Yue sucked in a sharp breath at the request.
"A dozen or so! You planning to eat them like meals? Being full of youthful vigor doesn't mean you should go that far."