True Cultivation

Between Chu Xiaotian and the two brothers, Cheng Dahu and Cheng Erhu, a tall figure stood proudly. At the sight of him, Xia Xue and Chu Xiaotian both brightened with joy. "Hall Master Ba Dao, what brings you here?" The newcomer was Ba Dao. He had learned from his disciples that Xia Xue and Chu Xiaotian were clashing with the Greenwood Three Tigers, and had immediately rushed over without a second thought, saving Chu Xiaotian at the most critical moment.

Ba Dao didn't answer them. His gaze fell instead on Cheng Yuhu, lying on the ground, and a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes. He knew the Greenwood Three Tigers well. All three were at the eighth stage of Body Refining, and they always advanced and retreated together. If they hadn't preferred to act alone, without followers, they would have been...

...considered the third-largest force in all of Greenwood Town, behind only the Mad Blade Martial Hall and the Hundred Herb Pavilion. Even so, neither of those two powers would lightly provoke them. Ba Dao couldn't understand how Chu Xiaotian had managed to make enemies of the three men. More importantly, how had this boy, who was only around the fourth stage of Body Refining, beaten Cheng Yuhu, an eighth-stage expert, into a state like a dead pig?

"Kid, what happened here?" After failing to figure it out for a while, Ba Dao gave up and turned to Chu Xiaotian, asking calmly. Xia Xue and Chu Xiaotian had a good relationship with the Mad Blade Martial Hall. He wanted to find out who had started this.

Chu Xiaotian glanced at the Greenwood Three Tigers, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly, then told Ba Dao what had happened. He didn't embellish anything, sticking to the facts. He only described the Corpse Poison as a kind of poison he had found himself.

"You three bastards! You dare lay such a heavy hand on Miss Xia's friend? Apologize to him right now, and we'll call it settled. Otherwise, don't blame me for showing no mercy!" After hearing Chu Xiaotian's account, Ba Dao's expression turned cold. He faced Cheng Dahu and Cheng Erhu and bellowed. Xia Xue was the source of their medicinal pills and had an excellent relationship with the martial hall. Now that she and her friend had been bullied on his turf, he naturally had to step in.

"Pah! He hurt our third brother like this, and you still expect us to apologize? Ba Dao, this is between the three of us and that kid. You'd better stay out of it, or you'll regret it." Looking at Cheng Yuhu, who lay on the ground, barely alive, Cheng Dahu and Cheng Erhu were already seeing red. At that moment, they'd even forgotten how strong Ba Dao was.

"Fine, fine. Let's see how you're going to make me regret it." Ba Dao gave a cold snort. The moment the words left his mouth, his figure vanished. Two booming impacts followed, and Cheng Dahu and Cheng Erhu flew through the air like a pair of torn sacks before crashing down beside Cheng Yuhu and rolling across the ground. With Ba Dao's cultivation, killing the two of them would have been easy. But this wasn't the time to take lives, so he'd only left them badly injured.

"This time, I'll let you off with a lesson. Don't let me see you in Greenwood Town again. Get out of here. Let's go." After glancing at the three men sprawled on the ground like dead dogs, Ba Dao waved a hand and barked the order, then led Chu Xiaotian and Xia Xue away.

Behind them, Cheng Dahu and Cheng Erhu glared at the trio's retreating backs with boundless hatred. Only after a long while did they manage to stand, then help the unconscious Cheng Yuhu to his feet. Cheng Yuhu's hands were now completely swollen and red, at least twice their former size. Yellow pus oozed from the wounds on his palms, filling the air with a foul stench.

Cheng Dahu and Cheng Erhu exchanged a look, hatred flashing in their eyes. After a long pause, they finally nodded. Cheng Dahu took up his greatsword, closed his eyes, and swung it down at Cheng Yuhu.

"Ah..." A scream of agony rang through half the street. To keep the poison in Cheng Yuhu's hands from spreading farther up his arms, Cheng Dahu had cut off both hands at the elbows. The searing pain jolted Cheng Yuhu awake, but he soon passed out again.

After quickly sprinkling on some medicine to stop the bleeding and bandaging Cheng Yuhu's wounds, the three men left without looking back or uttering a single threat. They limped straight out of Greenwood Town. But anyone who had seen their eyes would have found boundless hatred there—a sign that they weren't ready to let this go.

Ba Dao had already guessed what Cheng Dahu and the others would do. If Cheng Yuhu wanted to live, his hands couldn't be saved. That was why Ba Dao hadn't even turned around at the scream. Xia Xue didn't look back either; she didn't want to see the bloody scene. Only Chu Xiaotian glanced over his shoulder, worry flickering in his eyes. He couldn't help sighing inwardly. If you didn't pull out the roots, they'd grow again when the spring breeze blew. Since Ba Dao hadn't killed those three, Chu Xiaotian would have to spend a while looking over his shoulder. Ba Dao was strong enough not to fear their revenge, but Chu Xiaotian wasn't. The three men wouldn't come after them now, but as soon as they recovered, they'd seek revenge on him. With his current strength, he couldn't handle those madmen. But it was too late to change anything now. The only thing he could do was raise his strength before they healed.

After stirring up such a commotion as soon as they entered Greenwood Town, Chu Xiaotian and Xia Xue didn't linger. They thanked Ba Dao and headed straight for the Hundred Herb Pavilion. Xia Xue traded the medicinal pills for the herbs she needed and also got Chu Xiaotian a change of clothes. After that, the two returned to the valley where they lived. Xia Xue went into the alchemy room to make pills, while Chu Xiaotian roasted a few fish for dinner. Then, before night fell, he left the valley and headed deep into the forest.

For the past few days, Chu Xiaotian's cultivation had only involved controlling the Corpse Poison inside his body. He hadn't yet used it to strengthen his body. Now that he could control the poison, he could finally begin the Body Refining stage in earnest.

Sitting cross-legged in the valley, thick with masculine energy, Chu Xiaotian began cultivating according to the Body Refining method in the Heavenly Corpse Art. He drew out the Corpse Poison that had remained hidden inside him during the day and sent it coursing through every thread of flesh and blood in his body. Wherever the poison's frigid energy passed, the cells in his body grew stronger. As he used the Corpse Poison to refine his body, the Heavenly Corpse Art continuously drew the frigid power of heaven and earth into him, slowly strengthening the Corpse Poison within.

This was cultivation in the truest sense, and in that moment, the power of the Heavenly Corpse Art revealed itself to Chu Xiaotian.