Qu Tong did not leave very peacefully... ahem.
Even as she left, she still had not quite recovered. For some reason, Ma Xianhong's sudden embrace had wiped her mind blank.
All she could think about was his scorching embrace. After wavering several times, she finally chose to disperse the blue light in her palm.
Watching Biyou Village recede outside the car window, Qu Tong's eyes held an inscrutable look.
Whether Ma Xianhong's behavior meant he would rather sing in the rain and die than live under another's roof, that he had nothing to fear, or that he intended to stake everything against her, it all pointed to one thing.
Perhaps only now did she truly realize that her little brother had slipped out of her control.
Inside the workshop, Ma Xianhong spread his fingers and squeezed at empty air, seemingly savoring something. The corners of his mouth curled.
As expected of someone with Twin Wholeness Hands. She really did feel nice.
And speaking of Twin Wholeness Hands...
With a thought, the large screen before him displayed the blue light that had coiled around Qu Tong's hand just before he embraced her waist. Then the circulation route of the qi within her body appeared on the screen, flowing through a human figure assembled from countless tiny points of light.
"Hehehehe, this big sister is still a little green."
She might have been on the third level, but he was on the fifth.
Fortunately, Qu Tong had ultimately held back and chosen the outcome most beneficial to them both. Otherwise, Ma Xianhong could only have tearfully welcomed another honored guest into his basement's private suite. Killing her was out of the question-she was, after all, his own flesh and blood, his beloved sister and dearest kin. She would make a fine treasure to safeguard Jiejiao.
With his preparations already in place, whether it was his protective artifacts or his spiritual power, which Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements and his cheat had raised by several tiers, Qu Tong could not stir up any waves.
Or rather, the outcome had been sealed the moment she confidently arrived for their meeting. Ma Xianhong had already placed himself beyond defeat.
As for now...
This big sister still has her uses. Heh, I spend all day calling her "big sister." One of these days, I ought to make this big sister cry out properly too.
Recalling Qu Tong's awkward manner when she left, Ma Xianhong could not help raising his eyebrows.
Whenever the whim struck him, he would call Qu Tong over for another meeting. After enough meetings, once she completely dropped her guard, he could take a leaf out of General Yuwen's book. (Not really.)
Raising his hand, he summoned a puppet. Without dwelling on it, Ma Xianhong began applying his understanding of that qi circulation route to the puppet.
The Twin Wholeness Hands circulation route he had obtained was incomplete. Other cultivation methods might have been fine, but Twin Wholeness Hands reversed the acquired into the innate, after all. Heaven knew whether Duanmu Ying had buried any land mines in it back then.
Until he thoroughly understood it and obtained a version without side effects, Ma Xianhong had no intention of practicing it.
Honestly, among the Eight Miracles currently known to him-Spirit Summoning and Sending, Wind Queen's Qimen, Six-Celestial Thief, and Twin Wholeness Hands-every last one was a goddamn pitfall.
Yet he wanted every single one of them.
Although he could not cultivate it himself, Ma Xianhong was not without alternatives. For that, he had to thank Qu Tong's Self-Cultivation Furnace.
The Self-Cultivation Furnace deserved much of the credit for his idea of refining those divine arts and secret techniques into artifacts, and for his success in putting that idea into practice.
At the very least, with the information currently available, a little creativity, and relevant technology from other worlds, crafting an artifact with some of Twin Wholeness Hands' functions would be no problem.
Besides, if all else failed, he could ask his dear big sister whenever something came up. As a good sister who doted on her little brother, Qu Tong would surely lend a hand.
After all... my dear society president with your grand designs, you wouldn't want that goal you've pursued for so long to fail, would you?
Your little brother is very... ahem, ahem.
Casting those sexually frustrated lines out of his mind, Ma Xianhong cleared his throat and mobilized all the qi in his body. After sending Qu Tong a few WeChat messages for his daily dose of harassment, purple-gold light flashed in his eyes, and he began refining.
Having an artifact with the Soul Illumination Technique's functionality would be very useful while roaming the world.
And this artifact had a crucial role to play in his plans.
Gazing toward Mount Longhu, Ma Xianhong smiled brightly. There were far too few people as kindhearted as him.
Mount Longhu, the Celestial Master’s Mansion.
"Achoo!" Tian Jinzong sneezed, his bright eyes filling with suspicion.
Was I too tightly wound? Why did I suddenly feel as though someone was thinking about me?
Yet no matter how he pondered it, nothing came to mind. Tian Jinzong shook his head slightly and tapped the board with his arm stump. Beside him, Rongshan helped place a stone at the indicated spot.
"Senior brother, your turn."
The old Celestial Master seated opposite him frowned in thought for a long while before slowly placing a black stone.
"Excellent move!"
After racking his brains for ages, Tian Jinzong seemed to suddenly spot a way to break through. The strange feeling from his sneeze had long since been cast aside as he directed Rongshan to place another stone.
"Five in a row! Senior brother, thanks for letting me win! Hahahaha!"
"..." ×2
Exchanging a glance with the narrow-eyed Zhao Huanjin nearby, Rongshan's mouth twitched. He was just about to say something when Zhao Huanjin pulled him outside to discuss what they would eat that evening.
Only Zhang Zhiwei and Tian Jinzong remained in the room.
After chatting and laughing for a while, Zhang Zhiwei saw that Tian Jinzong was in much better spirits. His eyes flickered, and he merely curled his lips into a comforting smile.
This junior brother of mine really has suffered so much...
Both physically and mentally, he had endured torment after torment. It could even be said that he could neither live as he wished nor die when he wanted...
The burden he carried was far too heavy.
Still, this junior brother was wonderful in every other respect. Honestly, it was just his board-game skills that stank. The bastard had gotten hooked on five-in-a-row, and letting Tian Jinzong win even once took a ridiculous amount of effort.
Practically like taking on Zuo Ruotong and Zhang Jingqing at the same time.JPG
Alas, he still could not make his junior brother's life any easier. All he could do was spend more time with him.
Shaking his head slightly, Zhang Zhiwei gazed into the distance, his eyes deep.
These sudden stirrings have been coming so often lately. Perhaps... they seem to foretell something.
Biyou Village.
Letting out a long breath, Ma Xianhong watched the jade pearl floating before him, half red and half blue, spinning ceaselessly like a yin-yang symbol. His eyes blazed, and with a thought, he poured out the vitality, spiritual power, and vast quantity of qi stored beforehand in his power bank, the Thieving Devourer Beast.
Under the workings of Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements, the pearl's radiance abruptly solidified. The next instant, it seemed to transform from an inanimate object into a living thing, whirling about before Ma Xianhong.
"All done. Now the question is, what should I name this thing? The Dual-Handed Pearl?" Watching the artifact fly around before him, sometimes merging into one large pearl and sometimes splitting into two smaller ones, Ma Xianhong rubbed his chin.
Why is this pearl half Ao Bing and half Nezha.JPG
Though this thing could be said to derive from Twin Wholeness Hands, it could not actually achieve that level of precise control. It essentially relied on raw stats to hold it up, operating on the principle that with enough strength, even a brick could fly.
That suited his usual style perfectly.
Just like Sasuke's mind control and Tang San's life restoration over in the other worlds.
Then, with the craftsmanship of Divine Mechanism Hundred Refinements that rivaled nature itself, he had fashioned this Dual-Handed Pearl.
But whether Duanmu Ying had laid some trap back then, or because its vitality came from Tang San's trial card, the red orb representing life always gave Ma Xianhong a strange feeling. It seemed a little green. Meanwhile, the blue orb on the other side had a hint of red within its blue, and vaguely seemed to have several black tomoe spinning inside...
Red taken to its utmost had somehow turned gray.
The more he looked, the stranger it seemed. After checking that its functions were working properly, Ma Xianhong simply tucked it into the Heaven and Earth Belt at his waist.
Whatever. Together, this thing can be called the Dual-Handed Pearl, the Life and Nature Pearl, or something like that. Apart, they'll be the Demon Pill and the Spirit Pearl.
Next, it's about time to head down the mountain and find someone bound to me by fate.
At this point... Bilian should still be in high school, right? Gong Qing hasn't reached Mount Longhu yet either, and the Medicine Immortal Society over in Miao Territory seems to have flared up again. Should I go join the fun there first?
Before you continue