Water Ghost

After Zhou Yan and Ma Yan walked out of the gates of Tianhong Medical Hall, Ma Yan could not help but ask, "How is your progress with the health cultivation method?"

"I have already mastered it," Zhou Yan said with a slight nod.

Ma Yan let out a sigh of relief, "That is good."

After returning to his residence, Zhou Yan immediately went to check on the zombie, which was currently being nurtured inside the coffin.

Once a zombie reaches the Black Zombie stage, further advancement becomes extremely difficult. However, the Yin energy here provided significant assistance, and when combined with the secret techniques of the Profound Yin Corpse Refining Technique, it allowed the zombie to grow rapidly.

The Profound Yin Corpse Refining Technique focuses on the refining and controlling of corpses, containing numerous methods for both enhancing a corpse and commanding it.

Given Zhou Yan's current cultivation level, he could not yet utilize the more profound techniques, so he was practicing only the foundational ones.

With everything back on track, the anxiety that had been weighing on Zhou Yan finally dissipated.

Having lived two lifetimes, he quickly calmed his mind and continued his meditation and practice as usual.

During the day, he practiced the Five Animal Frolics and studied the Profound Yin Corpse Refining Technique, while at night, he cultivated the Mystic Yin Art and worked on corpse control.

Because of that drop of Profound Yin essence blood, Zhou Yan found himself quite adept at handling the first zombie he had refined; he was soon able to control it with ease, without feeling the slightest bit of backlash.

In addition to this, he practiced the Shennong Health Cultivation Method twice a day to help his body recover as quickly as possible.

During this time, once his body had recovered somewhat, he had even taken steps to conceal his condition before returning home, so that his mother and siblings would not worry.

Inside the new residence.

Zhou Yan sat cross-legged with the zombie behind him.

At this moment, he was not absorbing the corpse aura or Yin energy from the zombie, but was instead directly absorbing the Yin energy from the heavens and earth to refine it.

Having learned his lesson, Zhou Yan would not continue to push his body until it was fully healed, so as to avoid any irreversible damage.

"Hoo..."

After a long while, Zhou Yan slowly opened his eyes, sensing that yet another drop of Profound Yin essence blood had successfully condensed.

At this point, twenty-five drops of Profound Yin essence blood had already condensed within his heart.

If one included the drop used earlier for refining the corpse, Zhou Yan had already condensed twenty-six drops of Profound Yin essence blood.

Even though he was walking a heterodox path and had the support of a system, this speed still felt shockingly fast.

Although Taoist Ma had not specified how long it took him to condense his essence blood, the fact that he had been rolling around in the Essence Blood Realm for decades said it all.

Even without the system's support, it likely would not have been difficult for Zhou Yan to condense one hundred and eight drops of essence blood to break through to the Qi Induction Realm.

It seems my cultivation talent is quite decent; I might even be a genius, Zhou Yan thought to himself.

Thinking of this, a trace of joy could not help but rise in his heart.

After finishing his cultivation, Zhou Yan felt a restless urge to go for a walk.

The sky was pitch black, appearing peaceful yet filled with an endless darkness.

Before he began his cultivation, even with his Spring Leg technique having reached a minor level of success, he would not have been willing to go out at night.

After all, no matter how high one's martial arts, one still fears a kitchen knife.

Even a minor injury could mean being unable to work for days, and it could even lead to complications like wound infections.

People at the bottom of society do not have the luxury of being reckless.

But now, he truly wanted to walk outside and experience the loneliness and tranquility of the night, as well as the profound darkness.

Because he felt that he was becoming increasingly integrated into the darkness.

Acting on the thought, Zhou Yan draped a thick cloak over the zombie, covering even its head tightly, before heading out.

The residence was located in a remote area with few neighbors, and there was a river not far away.

Zhou Yan arrived at the riverbank and walked slowly along the stream; his heart relaxed unconsciously, and he felt as though his horizons had suddenly broadened.

He had been staying in the residence for quite some time, and he had thought nothing of it, but only today did he realize that he had actually been feeling somewhat stifled.

It was not much, but over time, it might have affected his state of mind.

Of course, it was more likely that it would have dissipated on its own one day without him even noticing.

People sometimes tend to get stuck in a rut, but at other times, they learn to forgive themselves.

Life is short; it is simply too hard to live otherwise!

"Hm, someone is there?"

Zhou Yan suddenly noticed a child of about eleven or twelve years old on the riverbank in the distance, holding a net and watching the water, as if looking for something.

Judging by his age, he was about the same size as Zhou Chuan, but much thinner—truly nothing but skin and bones.

"Fishing this late at night?"

Zhou Yan frowned subconsciously.

What kind of unlucky child would be fishing at this hour? Did he not know the dangers?

This small river looked unremarkable, yet every year, no fewer than a hundred corpses were tossed into its depths.

Most were victims of murder dumped into the water, though a small fraction were accidents that occurred within the river itself, which is why local families strictly forbade their children from playing near the banks.

Even so, three or four people drowned in this river every single year.

Just then, a mass of black hair suddenly surged up from an underwater current, coiling directly around the child's ankles.

The child stumbled, falling headlong into the river.

"Ah..."

Caught completely off guard, the child was dragged toward the riverbed; before long, a floating corpse would surely appear on the surface.

"Help me..."

The child flailed, but before he could even finish half a cry for help, his body sank rapidly.

Just as he was about to drown, a dark shadow suddenly appeared, grabbing the child by the arm and yanking him back up.

The force was immense; the child let out a wail of pain, feeling as if his body were being torn in two.

Fortunately, the child was pulled up in the end, narrowly escaping with his life.

"San Kuazi, it's you brat—have you lost your mind, daring to come here at night?" Zhou Yan finally made out the child's face; it was someone he knew.

Or rather, after living here for over a decade, he was familiar with everyone in the surrounding streets.

San Kuazi was still trembling with lingering fear, standing dazed for a long moment before he finally noticed Zhou Yan.

He scrutinized him for a while before calling out in an uncertain tone, "Big Brother Zhou Yan?"

"No shit, who else would it be but me?" Zhou Yan casually slapped him across the back of the head.

He had been the neighborhood ringleader since he was a child, and having stood on his own two feet since the age of thirteen, he was often praised by local families as the "neighbor's kid," commanding great prestige among the younger generation.

Of course, half of that prestige had been earned with his fists.

Xiao Qi, who pulled the cart, and San Kuazi standing before him, were both his former underlings.

Seeing Zhou Yan, San Kuazi's courage immediately returned; his body stopped shaking, and he scrambled to his feet.

"Big Brother Zhou Yan, there's a water ghost in the river—I was just nearly dragged under..."