By rights, Jiang Mengyun should have taken Ye Fei back at this point.
But Ye Fei was stark naked, and Jiang Mengyun had no men's clothes.
That did put her in a difficult position.
Not only that, the sight of Ye Fei's completely bare body left Jiang Mengyun feeling slightly flustered.
To be honest, this was the first time in her hundred years of cultivation that she had seen a naked man.
Having practiced martial arts since childhood, Ye Fei had a tall, straight frame despite being not yet seventeen. His muscles were firm and well-defined, making him extremely attractive.
He's Sister Luo Yue's son. Don't let your thoughts run wild.
Jiang Mengyun withdrew her somewhat dreamy gaze, took a deep breath, and silently admonished herself.
After calming herself, Jiang Mengyun stirred her spiritual sense, and a translucent, emerald-green pill floated before her.
Then she pointed a delicate finger, sending the pill flying straight into Ye Fei's mouth.
The pill dissolved the moment it entered his mouth. Without Ye Fei needing to circulate his energy to absorb it, streams of medicinal power seeped into his limbs and every part of his body.
Within moments, Ye Fei slowly regained consciousness.
"Hurry and put some clothes on."
When Ye Fei woke and simply stared blankly at her, even Jiang Mengyun, with her profound cultivation, could not help blushing as she reminded him.
"Ah!"
At Jiang Mengyun's reminder, Ye Fei cried out, only then realizing that he was still stark naked.
He hurriedly reached out with his right hand, retrieving his Storage Pouch and Azure Dragon Sword from beneath the waterfall.
Then he took a gray robe from his Storage Pouch and put it on.
"Sorry you had to see that, Uncle-Master Jiang."
Once dressed, Ye Fei gave an awkward smile, his face bright red.
"We're both cultivators. The body is merely a shell."
"Besides, at my age, you're no more than a child in my eyes. There's no need to dwell on it."
"Rest for a while, then get back to it. Reaching the first realm of body tempering isn't easy. There's still plenty of suffering ahead."
Jiang Mengyun struggled to control her voice and expression, trying to appear as normal as possible.
With that, she sat back down on the stone slab and began meditating, regulating her breathing.
Keep going!
Looking at the waterfall cascading before him, Ye Fei's heart quivered, and he sighed helplessly.
Truthfully, if he had a choice, he never wanted to experience that bone-gnawing pain again.
But if he wanted to keep advancing along the path of immortal cultivation, he had to endure this suffering.
"I'll give it everything I've got!"
After resting for almost an hour, Ye Fei gritted his teeth, took out another Skin Refining Pill, and placed it in his mouth.
This time, before its medicinal power could spread, he darted into the waterfall.
It still hurts so much!
Within a breath, that excruciating pain once again spread throughout Ye Fei's body.
It seems a little better than last time.
After roughly half an incense stick's worth of time, Ye Fei suddenly realized that the terrible pain in his body had eased somewhat compared with before.
He also felt that the waterfall's impact was doing noticeably less damage to his skin.
Delighted by these changes, Ye Fei suddenly felt strength flood his body.
Two double-hours later.
When the second Skin Refining Pill's medicinal power ran out, Ye Fei did not stop cultivating as he had the first time.
He gritted his teeth, stirred his spiritual sense, and took out another Skin Refining Pill, placing it in his mouth.
Although the pain had lessened somewhat again, enduring it continuously still made his body begin to tremble uncontrollably.
"Ye Fei!"
"You have to hold on!"
Ye Fei shouted, clenched his teeth, and pushed the circulation speed of the Body Tempering Formula to its limit.
Another two double-hours passed. When the third Skin Refining Pill's medicinal power ran out, Ye Fei did not keep pushing himself.
In a flash, he leaped out of the waterfall.
Then he stirred his spiritual sense, took out another set of clothes, and put them on.
Once dressed, he threw himself onto his back on the huge rock without a care, gasping for breath.
"Are you going to continue?"
Seeing him like this, Jiang Mengyun's heart trembled, and she asked with some concern.
She had witnessed all the pain Ye Fei had endured.
She truly feared Ye Fei would not be able to persevere.
"Of course I am!"
"But I need to rest first. It hurts so much I can barely stand."
Though the pain made him bare his teeth and grimace, Ye Fei's gaze remained utterly resolute.
"That's good."
Jiang Mengyun nodded gently and said no more.
She very much wanted to give Ye Fei another pill, but after weighing the matter, she abandoned the idea.
To travel farther along this vast, elusive road to immortality, such suffering had to be endured.
Only through a thousand hammerings and a hundred temperings could one hone one's will and strengthen one's Dao heart.
For Ye Fei, these experiences would bring many benefits.
After resting for almost another hour, Ye Fei stood and stripped off his clothes.
The sight startled Jiang Mengyun, who had been watching him from a distance. She hurriedly turned away, her face crimson with embarrassment.
Although she had already seen all of Ye Fei's body, watching him deliberately undress had a much greater impact on her.
Ye Fei had no choice. This was the only set of clothes left in his Storage Pouch. If the waterfall tore it apart too, he would have to go naked.
She's already seen everything anyway. One more look won't hurt.
By now, Ye Fei had lost his misgivings.
Jiang Mengyun had said that the body was merely a shell.
If Jiang Mengyun, a woman, did not mind, what did he, a man, have to fear?
Taking another Skin Refining Pill, Ye Fei rushed into the waterfall.
And so, Ye Fei began by resting after every two Skin Refining Pills, then every three, then four, and finally five.
As the skin all over Ye Fei's body repeatedly tore and regenerated, it grew tougher and tougher.
By the time he took his fifteenth Skin Refining Pill, the pain in his body had become barely perceptible.
The waterfall's impact on his skin had also weakened, to the point that it could hardly injure him anymore.
He's finally made it through.
Jiang Mengyun, who had been watching Ye Fei all along, felt relief wash over her, and a faint smile finally appeared on her face.
Ye Fei had not disappointed her.
At this moment, Ye Fei felt much the same as Jiang Mengyun. Not only had the pain vanished, but the waterfall's impact even felt somewhat pleasant.
When he took the sixteenth Skin Refining Pill, his entire body showed no reaction.
Clearly, the Skin Refining Pills no longer had any effect on him.
Moreover, even without taking a Skin Refining Pill, he could stand beneath the waterfall without its impact causing him any harm.
"All right, stop."
Seeing this, Jiang Mengyun had Ye Fei stop cultivating.
"Uncle-Master Jiang, does this mean I've succeeded?"
Dressed and standing beside Jiang Mengyun once more, Ye Fei's face was full of excitement.
"Yes."
Jiang Mengyun smiled and nodded.
"Then let me see just how tough my skin is after body tempering."
Knowing he had successfully completed Body Tempering, Ye Fei suddenly grew eager and summoned his magical artifact longsword.
Then, holding the sword in his right hand, he forcefully drew it across his left arm.
Scrape!
To Ye Fei's surprise, the sword not only failed to cut his skin, but caused not even a trace of pain. It even produced the sound of metal scraping against metal.
"It's that strong?"
For a moment, Ye Fei was dumbfounded.
"You! Who uses himself as a test subject?"
"Ordinary magical artifacts are fine, but you'll still need to be careful around spirit artifacts."
Looking at Ye Fei's antics, Jiang Mengyun could not help letting out a soft laugh, revealing all her charm.
Uncle-Master Jiang is so beautiful.
For some reason, the moment Ye Fei saw Jiang Mengyun's enchanting smile, his gaze went blank, and he lost himself.
Before you continue