Phoenix Marrow Tempering

Pang Jian had a nightmare.

In the dream, the agonizing sensation of ten thousand ants gnawing at his bones seemed to become reality.

What was different was that it wasn't thousands of ants in his dream, but countless divine phoenixes dancing gracefully.

Countless divine phoenixes, as tiny as specks of dust, soared within his sternum and both arms, displaying their miraculous forms deep within his marrow and inflicting upon him unspeakable torment.

Compared to this excruciating pain, the agony he felt when Sun Bin used lightning to roam his body and test his talent was nothing at all.

Perhaps that was why he could grit his teeth and endure it last time, yet this time he had fainted on the spot.

He did not know how much time had passed when Pang Jian, his body's high fever finally subsided, slowly drifted back to consciousness.

"How did you suddenly fall ill, kid?"

As soon as he opened his eyes, Pang Jian saw Zhou Qingchen sitting cross-legged on the ground nearby, guarding him. With a blade of grass between his teeth, he flashed a grin: "How are you feeling now?"

Pang Jian tried to move his neck and arms, only to hear his neck "crack" as if it had been stiff for a long time.

"Ugh!"

His brows twitched. He felt as if he had been blessed with some unknown divine power; his body was brimming with inexhaustible strength, and his chest bones gave him the strange illusion of being as hard as gold and iron.

As he swung his arms, he felt as though his arm bones had been tempered as well, clearly different from before.

His body felt strange in every way, but it was inconvenient to discuss it with Zhou Qingchen, so he asked indirectly: "Young Master Zhou, I heard that the third realm of cultivation is called the Xisui Realm?"

As he asked, he thought of the bizarre scene in his dream where numerous divine phoenixes soared through his arm bones and marrow.

"Why are you interested in that? I haven't even succeeded in marrow-cleansing yet, so don't even think about it."

Zhou Qingchen laughed in spite of himself and explained in detail: "For all of us, the first realm of cultivation is the Qi Refining Realm, which requires guiding the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into the dantian's spiritual sea. The Qi Refining stage is a process of accumulation; there is no qualitative improvement in overall strength, and it is not much stronger than a mortal who knows nothing of cultivation."

He paused for a moment, then said solemnly: "The Pulse-Opening Realm is different."

"Once you reach the Pulse-Opening Realm, you can channel the spiritual energy from your dantian into the meridians of your limbs. With the meridians filled with spiritual energy, a cultivator becomes immensely powerful and can even project that energy outward through their limbs, erupting with astonishing might."

He extended a hand, rolled up his sleeve to reveal half of his forearm, and secretly exerted force.

Pang Jian clearly saw a faint, dark red light flowing through the meridians of his forearm, traveling all the way to his palm.

"Whoosh!"

A cluster of deep red spiritual light suddenly rose from his palm, and under his skillful control, it slowly transformed into a small, deep red mountain.

With a casual flick, the illusory "Red Mountain" floating in his palm smashed into a nearby boulder.

"Boom!"

The stone shattered instantly.

"This is the power of the Pulse-Opening Realm."

Zhou Qingchen demonstrated with calm composure.

The commotion he created drew the attention of the Zhou and Ning families in the distance, and even Shangguan Qin could not help but look over.

"As for the Xisui Realm, it is known as bone-cleansing and marrow-washing, focusing on the tempering of the entire body's bones, flesh, and internal organs. A master who has perfected the Xisui Realm often signifies a rebirth, having washed away their mortal coil."

A hint of pride appeared in Zhou Qingchen's eyes as he held his head high: "Once I reach the Xisui Realm, I will be able to wash away the impurities hidden within my flesh and bones, and it will not hinder my cultivation at Red Mountain."

He told Pang Jian that because the spiritual energy of the Fourth Realm was not pure enough, Qi Refiners cultivating in this world would naturally retain turbid impurities in their bodies.

When he eventually stepped into Red Mountain, he would first break through to the Xisui Realm to complete his own rebirth.

"Xisui, bone-cleansing and marrow-washing."

Pang Jian murmured to himself, lost in thought, feeling that while he was unconscious, he had been tempered by some mysterious, unknown power that had refined his chest and arm bones.

He suspected it was that cluster of vanished amber light, but he could find no concrete evidence and felt it was not appropriate to ask Zhou Qingchen.

It was already evening, and the sky was growing dim; it looked as if night was about to fall.

After his long talk with Zhou Qingchen, Pang Jian finally surveyed his surroundings and saw the Ning family's warhorses resting together.

The servants of the Zhou family were currently building a fire to cook, while Ning Yao and Ning Yuanshan were not far from the fire, yet they still maintained a certain distance from the Zhou family.

A rift had formed; the Zhou and Ning families were no longer on friendly terms, and both sides had begun to guard against one another.

Han Duping, who was skilled at breaking formations, was busy pestering Shangguan Qin with a cheeky grin, seemingly oblivious to the annoyance on her face.

Pang Jian stood up slowly, examined the mountain behind him, and looked toward the source of the sound of flowing water.

He saw a small waterfall cascading down from the mountain behind him, gathering into a large pool with dark, murky water.

The water falling from the waterfall was clear and transparent, yet it turned black upon hitting the pool, which seemed quite strange.

Near the mountain wall of the pool, there was a protruding... massive withered bone. It emitted not a shred of luster, yet it gave Pang Jian a great shock, and he exclaimed: "Remains of the Heavenly Phoenix?"

Zhou Qingchen nodded with a smile and said: "Most of the bone is deep at the bottom of the pool; only a section is exposed."

"While you were in a high fever and unconscious, I checked it carefully, and this withered bone has nothing miraculous about it. It is not the so-called divine bone possessing innate inheritance that everyone is desperately searching for."

Zhou Qingchen had long since concluded that a bone containing innate inherited divine power could never possibly appear in the Fourth Realm.

Pang Jian thought of the withered bone that had contained the mysterious glimmer of light, thinking to himself that even without a Heavenly Phoenix inheritance, every withered bone that fell from the sky must hide some wonders.

"You don't need to worry. We are very cautious this time; as soon as another earthquake occurs, we will evacuate immediately."

Zhou Qingchen was in a relaxed state of mind, assuming as a matter of course that the anomalies surrounding the withered bones would be accompanied by the rumbling of earthquakes.

"Blackwater? The Blackwater Pool!"

Pang Jian looked at the pool behind them, and after a moment of stunned silence, his expression turned incredibly grave. He suddenly shouted, "This place is not safe! You shouldn't have made camp here!"

He remembered now!

This area containing the Blackwater Pool had been listed by his father as one of the forbidden zones of the Cenji Mountains, and he had been explicitly told never to set foot in it.

He had strictly followed his father's instructions; all the places his father had designated as forbidden zones were areas he had never ventured deep into over the years.

Because he had a younger sister to look after, he was unwilling to take risks, terrified that he might disappear just like his father, plunging Pang Lin's life into its darkest hour.

Pang Lin had not yet grown into an adult; having lost her father at such a young age, she could not afford to lose him as well.

"Is there something wrong with this place?"

While questioning Pang Jian, Zhou Qingchen beckoned to Han Duping, signaling him to stop pestering Shangguan Qin.

Seeing Han Duping look over, he immediately barked, "Old Han, get everyone ready. We need to leave this place as soon as possible."

After their previous experience, he now trusted Pang Jian unconditionally, and he was a man of action.

He and Pang Jian immediately headed toward where the warhorses were tethered.

Ning Yao and Ning Yuanshan, who had been whispering about whether or not to head to the Extreme North, were suddenly made nervous by their actions.

Shangguan Qin also felt uneasy. Before Pang Jian could even reach her, she abandoned Han Duping and bolted toward the date-red warhorse.

However, before she could reach the horses, every single one of them—including the date-red warhorse—collapsed to the ground one after another, foaming at the mouth.

In the blink of an eye, all the warhorses lay dead, having succumbed to a potent poison.

"Zhang Heng!"

Ning Yuanshan flew into a rage, roaring toward the woods, "I told you to feed the horses, what kind of filth did you give them?!"

"The man you recruited has likely poisoned all the horses on purpose." Han Duping's expression darkened as he sensed something was wrong. He shouted, "He said the water in the Blackwater Pool wasn't clean and went elsewhere to find a water source. I suspect he went to meet someone!"

"He poisoned the horses so we couldn't make a clean getaway," Zhou Qingchen interjected in a low voice.

The young master of the Zhou Family, showing little fear, walked with Pang Jian to stand before the group. He looked in the direction Zhang Heng had departed, then back at the Blackwater Pool behind them and the towering, smooth rock walls.

Behind them, it was clearly impossible to use as a retreat.

Although there were trees and tangled, withered grass in front of them, the terrain was quite open, allowing them to withdraw in any direction.

"Unless a treasure worth killing for appears, our Seven Great Families rarely tear off the mask of civility completely." As a genius of the Zhou Family, possessing both status and confidence, Zhou Qingchen was unperturbed. He said coldly, "I'd like to see which family dares to lay a hand on me, Zhou Qingchen!"

"Worthy of being a genius seed chosen by Red Mountain."

A hoarse, strange voice suddenly rang out, and then a man riding a python emerged unhurriedly from the depths of the withered grass.

The python, as thick as a water barrel, bore black and white patterns. Its forked tongue flickered in and out, and its serpentine eyes glowed with a fierce, emerald light.

The man riding the snake wore loose clothing matching the python's patterns, his hands tucked into his sleeves, his frame as thin as a bamboo pole.

"This old one is Hong Tai. In my early years, I was a member of the Blood Moon, but unfortunately, I was expelled a hundred years ago. Alas, I could no longer stay in the Upper Realm, so I had to drift in the Lower Realm." The snake-rider smiled as he introduced himself.

"Swish! Swish-swish!"

After he appeared, many people without uniform attire emerged one after another from the waist-high grass.

Zhang Heng was among them.

"Hong Tai?"

"Hong Tai!"

Juniors like Zhou Qingchen and Ning Yao felt the name was unfamiliar and wore puzzled expressions.

Han Duping, however, turned slightly pale. Looking at the python-riding Hong Tai, he whispered to Zhou Qingchen, "He is one of the Dark Ghosts."

"Dark Ghosts?"

Pang Jian was bewildered.

Upon hearing that the newcomers were from the Dark Ghosts, the expressions of Zhou Qingchen, Ning Yao, and Ning Yuanshan instantly turned ugly.

The strongest sects and powers in the Fourth Realm, where they resided, were naturally the Seven Great Families.

The Seven Great Families all had some connection to the sects of the Upper Realm; they were considered the official and orthodox powers of this realm, controlling the seven regions with the richest cultivation resources.

The Seven Great Families maintained close ties and, on the surface, their relationships were harmonious, rarely erupting into life-or-death conflicts.

The Dark Ghosts, however, were a faction of cultivators existing outside the Seven Great Families, wandering in the shadows and the fragmented lands on the periphery.

The so-called Dark Ghosts referred to the lonely souls and wild spirits lurking in the deep darkness.

The Seven Great Families often joined forces to suppress the Dark Ghosts, but the organization was adept at hiding and fleeing, and to this day, they had not been wiped out, continuing to operate in the dark corners.

The Seven Great Families still did not know who the leader of the Dark Ghosts was or what level of cultivation they possessed.

They only knew that the leader of the Dark Ghosts had recruited some evil cultivators who could no longer survive in the Upper Realm, providing them with a place to hide in the Lower Realm.

"Since we, the Dark Ghosts, received news that the Heavenly Phoenix divine remains had disintegrated and its bones had fallen into various parts of the world, we naturally wanted to try our luck."

Hong Tai pointed at Zhang Heng and introduced him quite openly: "He is one of my Dark Ghosts, having long since infiltrated the Ning Family. There are many more Dark Ghost members like him within your Seven Great Families; you simply don't know it yet."

"Only at certain critical moments will they reveal their true identities to handle major tasks for us."

Hearing him speak so bluntly about there being many others like Zhang Heng, Zhou Qingchen and the others felt a heavy weight settle in their hearts.

"Alright, enough idle chatter; let us attend to the business at hand."

Hong Tai clapped his hands, wasting no more time, and smiled as he issued his order: "Aside from those two women, slaughter everyone else. Do not leave a single one alive for me."

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