Playthings in His Palm, Surging Strength

Inside the inn room.

A bowl of clear water sat on the wooden table. Beside it lay an opened oil-paper packet, its Body-Devouring Powder all poured into the bowl by Lu Li without leaving a trace.

Lu Li lifted the porcelain bowl without hesitation, tipped back his head, and drained it in one gulp.

The instant he swallowed it, he felt the inner qi throughout his body surge wildly, like a gluttonous beast encountering an unparalleled feast.

"Worthy of something produced by Shangling Cliff. It really packs a punch!"

Lu Li's spirits rose. He immediately sat cross-legged and began circulating the Poison Astral Body and the Erosion Essence Scripture.

Ever since Liangshui Town, Lu Li had been studying the Poison Astral Body. He had long since memorized its circulation route, and now he felt the poison coursing through his body.

Under normal circumstances, poison had to be applied externally. One would then circulate inner qi along the prescribed routes to gradually adapt to it, allowing the original skin to slowly rot away before new skin grew in its place.

That was also the most dangerous step. If the body failed to adapt, one would turn into something neither human nor ghost, just like Red Ghost Buddha.

Of course, the most effective method of absorbing poison was to directly swallow a potent toxin. But that method was exceedingly deadly. Even Qi Solidification martial artists had to proceed with caution.

One misstep, and the poison would corrode through one's organs, let alone with a deadly toxin like Body-Devouring Powder.

But Lu Li had no such concerns.

How could cultivation be so inconvenient?

With the Xiangliu Martial Dao Essence-Eroding Scripture, he possessed a body immune to all poisons!

"One poison, two uses. This is the Demon Martial Path..."

Lu Li sighed inwardly. He could feel his inner qi gradually merging with the poison of the Body-Devouring Powder. At the same time, his inner qi rapidly increased, no slower than when he refined blood qi!

"Cultivating blood qi and poison together... Demon Martial Path, let me see where my limits lie!"

Lu Li's expression remained calm as he began refining blood qi as well. An invisible force billowed around his body, making his clothes flap loudly.

Inside him, his fifth hidden meridian was filling at a visible rate.

Wind-and-Rain Tower.

This was the tallest building in Qingzhou City, located in the heart of the city where every inch of land was worth a fortune. Its guests were all people of considerable wealth.

"Mr. Wan, those peasants have indeed begun making moves. Word from below says that a carriage transporting sacrifices was intercepted."

Xue Shaokan frowned, his eyes gloomy and his expression unpleasant.

"No matter."

Yin Duanyue waved his feather fan, looking utterly unconcerned.

"They are only a few sacrifices. Let them rescue them and taste a little success. If you do not cast enough bait, how can you hook a big fish?"

"Sir, you mean..."

Xue Shaokan's expression shifted slightly.

At that, Yin Duanyue smiled.

"That group has stationed themselves outside the three city gates, waiting to intercept sacrifices. They are even planning to ambush the ritual site in the rear mountains half a month from now..."

"Then I shall grant them their wish. Once they have tasted enough success, it will be time to draw in the net."

Xue Shaokan's eyes flickered as he said seriously, "Please enlighten me, sir."

Yin Duanyue suddenly snapped his feather fan shut and gazed out at the bustling streets beyond the window, a cold smile on his lips.

"If I remember correctly, wasn't the president of the Heavenly Righteousness Society, 'Slender Golden Saber,' beaten to the brink of death by that Drooping-Ear Monk?"

"When the next batch of sacrifices is transported here, place Slender Golden Saber on the execution ground and publicly behead him. Let us see whether those 'righteous heroes' will come to save him."

"Slender Golden Saber?"

Surprise flashed through Xue Shaokan's eyes. "Didn't that man escape? How is he in our hands?"

Yin Duanyue clapped his hands and laughed.

"Slender Golden Saber is naturally not in our hands. He is already dead. His escape was merely news I released. How could those peasants possibly know?"

"And a dead man cannot expose a lie."

Xue Shaokan finally understood. He laughed as well.

"Sir's plan is truly ingenious. We need only release the news and see whether those heroes will save their like-minded brother."

Yin Duanyue smiled faintly.

"Save him? Then we will ambush them with heavy troops and wipe them out in one stroke. If they do not save him, that is no matter either. The Thousand-Infant Feast is only short by a few dozen people. At worst, we can seize them from within the city. It will not delay the forging of the weapon at all."

"And if the Hidden Heroes Alliance and the Righteousness Gang ignore the Heavenly Righteousness Society, resentment will inevitably remain among their people."

Hearing this, Xue Shaokan finally relaxed completely. He raised a cup of wine and smiled.

"With you here, sir, those peasants are nothing more than playthings in our palms."

Inside the inn.

Lu Li remained in his room, cultivating without pause.

It had to be said, something produced by Shangling Cliff truly had ferocious effects.

[Martial Art: Poison Astral Body]

[Layer: Second Layer]

[Special Effect: Poison Force]

[Poison Force: Your inner qi and blood will carry the poison you have refined, and Poison Force can form a layer of pseudo poison astral qi over the surface of your body.]

The second layer of the Poison Astral Body had reached completion!

Lu Li rose to his full height and lightly lifted a hand. Invisible force flowed around it, carrying a hazy refracted gleam.

This was the manifestation of the Body-Devouring Powder clinging to his inner qi. Even the force of the Heart-Breaking Buddha Body now carried poison.

"The first layer condenses poison, the second gathers poison, and the third transforms poison."

The scripture of the Poison Astral Body surfaced in his mind, and Lu Li's eyes gleamed.

As the name implied, condensing poison meant cultivating toxicity into the body. The second layer, gathering poison, marked the beginning of forming pseudo poison astral qi. Since Lu Li was immune to poison, the instant he swallowed the Body-Devouring Powder, it was equivalent to completing the first layer.

After he completely absorbed the Body-Devouring Powder, the second layer, Gathering Poison, naturally followed.

As for the third layer...

"Transforming poison... returning to simplicity, completely turning the poison one has cultivated into one's own power instead of borrowing it from an external source."

"At that point, anyone who touches me will be poisoned."

After sorting through the gains from the Poison Astral Body, Lu Li was deeply satisfied. Poison Force could stack with the Heart-Breaking Buddha Body and Intransigent Qi. His strength had increased by more than double.

Not only that, the Poison Astral Body was also a body-tempering art. Tempered together with the Heart-Breaking Buddha Body, his body was now difficult to harm with blades or swords even without using Intransigent Qi.

"My cultivation has risen as well—Sixth Layer of Meridian Opening!"

The effect of refining the Body-Devouring Powder together with blood qi was like riding a rocket. In merely one day, Lu Li had crossed two minor realms in succession and reached the Sixth Layer of Meridian Opening.

The twelve layers of Meridian Opening were divided into early, middle, and late stages, with three minor realms per stage. Once Lu Li broke through to the seventh layer, he would successfully enter the late stage of Meridian Opening.

And then, both being in the late stage, even if Drooping-Ear Monk were two minor realms above him, Lu Li was confident he could hammer him to death with one hand.

"Half a month may be enough for me to reach completion in the Meridian-Unblocking Realm. By then, there will be no need to care about any schemes. I can simply crush everything in my way."

Lu Li stretched lazily. He knew that the mastermind behind the Thousand-Eyed Bodhisattva Temple affair was a man named Yin Duanyue.

This man was known for his sinister and vicious schemes. In the future, he would even be known alongside Tong Xinghe as the twin stars of righteousness and evil.

Yin Duanyue had attached himself to the Xue Household for the sake of the evil weapon. He could be called a martial arts fanatic, but his aptitude was poor, so he sought to improve his cultivation through unorthodox means.

Even if it meant committing every evil deed under heaven, he would not hesitate.

"Before absolute power, schemes are useless. Besides, I have the advantage of knowing more."

With those thoughts turning in his mind, Lu Li went downstairs, checked out of the inn, and walked along the broad streets.

Dawn had just broken, and the sky was still dim.

Yet the streets were already crowded with a tide of people. Everywhere he looked, vendors hawked colorful snacks without pause.

"Boss, two baskets of chive fried dumplings, plus one meat pancake."

Lu Li stood before a snack stall, buying breakfast for Liu Yueling. After paying, he carried the piping-hot food toward Peng Family Noodle Shop.

He had become so absorbed in cultivation that he had forgotten about the little girl and left her at home. Fortunately, Peng Family Noodle Shop had quick-made noodles, so he did not need to worry about Liu Yueling going hungry.

After passing through streets and alleys and entering the southern part of the city, Lu Li suddenly stirred and glanced to the side.

In a broad square, a notice had been posted. A crowd had gathered beneath it, discussing it noisily.

"Slender Golden Saber is going to be executed?"

"Yes. What a pity for such a hero. Who would have thought he still could not escape the authorities' capture?"

Slender Golden Saber... the president of the Heavenly Righteousness Society?

Lu Li narrowed his eyes and swept his gaze over the posted notice. Several large characters stood out sharply.

Seven days from now, Slender Golden Saber will be beheaded at the southern execution ground!