When the morning light filtered through the window, Qin Tiexin opened his eyes.
He stood up from the futon and moved his limbs. Most of the weakness caused by the seven days of blood transfusion had subsided, and was replaced by a deeper sense of strength and sustainability. When the blood flowed in the blood vessels, he could feel that every drop of blood seemed to have been reforged, becoming thicker, heavier, and carrying a steady stream of energy.
He walked to the iron pot in the corner of cave abode and opened the lid. There was half a pot of broth left over from last night, which was already cold. He didn't heat it up, so he took a scoop and drank it. The broth entered his stomach, replenishing the final deficit in his body.
After drinking, he wiped his mouth and prepared to continue practicing Spiritual Qi carving knife.
The waist message Jade Slip suddenly vibrated.
Qin Tiexin picked it up and injected spiritual power. Luo Ling's voice came out. "Tiexin, come to Zhuxintang when you wake up."
Short and direct.
Qin Tiexin put away Jade Slip, put on clean linen clothes, put Edgeless on his shoulders, and came out cave abode.
Walking on the mountain road, he deliberately adjusted his breathing and felt the changes after blood transfusion. The strength accumulated in the blood, like a dam accumulating water, neither urgent nor slow, but deep. He tried to hold Edgeless with one hand - a weight of 6,300 kilograms was pressed on his right arm. It was still heavy, but the weight was more "steady". It was as if the knife had become a part of the body, rather than an external object that required effort to support, and the slight pressing feeling had disappeared.
When we arrived at Zhuxintang, the door was open.
Qin Tiexin walked in and found that not only Luo Ling and Wu Zhen were in the hall, but also a third person.
The man was standing next to the forging platform, with his back to the door. He was thin, wearing an ordinary blue-gray monk's robe, and his hair was tied up casually. His aura was Foundation Establishment Realm, but it was very vague, as if separated by a layer of veil.
Hearing footsteps, the man turned around.
He looks about thirty years old, with an ordinary appearance, the kind that you wouldn't find in a crowd. His skin is yellowish, there are some fine lines at the corners of his eyes, his eyes are calm, and he has no energy.
Luo Ling sat on the stone bench with her legs crossed. When she saw Qin Tiexin coming in, she raised her chin and said, "Here?"
Wu Zhen stood next to her, folding his hands in his sleeves, and nodded to Qin Tiexin.
Qin Tiexin walked to the hall and saluted. "Master, Master."
Then he looked at the stranger.
Luo Ling did not introduce him, but just said to the man, "Okay, stop pretending. Are you still doing this in front of us? Get rid of the puppetry!"
"Puppetry?" Qin Tiexin was stunned.
He looked at the young man. The young man scratched his head, his expression a little embarrassed. Then, the look in his eyes suddenly disappeared - not dim, but completely empty, like two glass beads. Then, a jade-colored beetle the size of a fingernail flew out of his chest, landed on the ground, made a soft "pop" sound, and exploded into a cloud of smoke.
When the smoke dissipated, the beetle transformed into a young monk in his mid-twenties.
This time his appearance changed a bit. He looked to be in his mid-twenties, slightly taller, and wore the same gray preaching robe, but his face was different - his features were regular, but his eyes were wandering, and he glanced left and right from time to time, as if he was on guard against something. He scratched his head and grinned at Luo Ling: "Master, your eyesight is still so good."
The voice also changed, becoming clearer.
Luo Ling rolled her eyes, ignored him, and said to Qin Tiexin, "This is your senior brother, Chen Xi."
Qin Tiexin looked at the young monk, who was also looking at him, with a look in his eyes, and a kind of... vigilance? Although there was a smile on his face, his body was slightly sideways, and his left hand was placed on his waist intentionally or unintentionally - there were three Storage Bag hanging there, with different styles.
"Senior brother." Qin Tiexin bowed.
Chen Xi waved his hand. "You're welcome, you're welcome." He walked over and looked at the Qin Tiexin up and down, especially the Edgeless on his shoulder, "Hey, this knife is heavy enough. You are the master's new junior brother, right? I heard that you won the double championship in the outer sect competition?"
"A fluke."
"It's a lucky thing." Luo Ling interjected, "I made it for real." She looked at Chen Xi, "You too, just talk properly when you come back, instead of making a puppet wandering around outside, is it interesting?"
Chen Xi grimaced. "It's too dangerous outside. Who knows if there are enemies watching? Use puppets to explore the way, safety first."
Wu Zhen spoke at this time, with doubt in his tone. "Puppetry... can it still be used like this?"
"Uncle Master, I don't know." Chen Xi turned to Wu Zhen and looked serious, "My puppet is not an ordinary control puppet, it is a 'substitute puppet'. A ray of soul resides in it, which can display 70% of my strength, and can also self-destruct to stop the enemy. Even if there is an ambush, the loss is only a ray of soul and some materials, which is better than if something happens to me."
He said it as a matter of course, as if it was a matter of course.
Luo Ling rubbed his temples. "Okay, okay, take off the disguise too. It looks annoying."
The smile on Chen Xi's face froze, "Master, I'm... quite safe like this."
"Withdrawn."
"There's really no need..."
"Withdraw!"
Chen Xi sighed and pinched Method Formula reluctantly. The muscles on his face began to squirm, as if something was crawling under the skin. The bones made a subtle "click" sound, and the outline of his facial features gradually changed.
A few breaths later, a completely different face appeared in front of Qin Tiexin.
He is in his mid-twenties, has delicate eyebrows, a straight nose, and thin lips. He is handsome, but his handsomeness is bookish and even a bit weak. Coupled with his thin figure and alert eyes, he looks like a scholar ready to escape at any time.
Chen Xi touched his face and said sadly, "Master, I really feel insecure like this. I look too conspicuous and will be easily remembered by others, and it will be difficult to run away."
Luo Ling didn't answer, just looked at Qin Tiexin: "I've seen it, your senior brother, Foundation Establishment Late Stage, just came back from a mission. This is his virtue, don't imitate him."
Qin Tiexin nodded and saluted Chen Xi again. "I've met senior brother."
Chen Xi then stopped his grimace and returned the greeting seriously. "Junior brother, you're welcome." He gave a weak support, stretched out his hand halfway and retracted it, paused, and suddenly remembered something, "By the way, it's our first time meeting, and senior brother doesn't have anything good to give you..."
He started to take out things.
He took out a stack of talismans from Storage Bag on his left waist, made of yellow paper and cinnabar, Spiritual Qi restrained. He counted them, pulled out ten and handed them to Qin Tiexin: "This is a teleportation talisman. Five large teleportation talismans can teleport three hundred miles; five small teleportation talismans can teleport thirty miles. Remember, don't hesitate when using it. If you feel something is wrong, tear it up immediately. After tearing it, run away and don't look back."
Qin Tiexin was holding the stack of talismans in a daze.
Chen Xi then took out a palm-sized wooden figure from the ankle of his right foot, where he wore an inconspicuous wooden anklet. The figure was roughly carved, but its surface was covered with fine runes.
"Little puppet for death." Chen Xi handed it over, "Bring it with you after you have sacrificed it. When you encounter a fatal attack, it will be automatically triggered and block it once for you. However, it can only block attacks below the golden elixir stage, and it can only be used once. When senior brother, I become more skilled, I will get you a more advanced one."
Qin Tiexin took over the little wooden figure and felt it was warm and lifelike.
Chen Xi wasn't finished yet. He raised his right hand, wearing a simple silver ring on his ring finger. He touched the ring, and a light flashed, and there was a jade pendant in his palm. The jade pendant was milky white, with a blood-like line in the middle.
"Soul-protecting jade." Chen Xi explained, "It can block spiritual attacks, spiritual attacks and other insidious moves. However, there is a limit to the number of times, up to ten times. And it cannot block those at the golden elixir level, Foundation Establishment Late Stage is the upper limit. But remember, spiritual attacks are hard to guard against, so it's best not to hit them. If you see someone who knows magic or has something wrong with his eyes, turn around and run away, don't bet."
He also handed the jade pendant to Qin Tiexin.
Qin Tiexin took it with both hands and looked at the things piled in his arms - talismans, puppets, and jade pendants. Each of them is used to save one's life and escape, and each has clear restrictions.
He looked up at Chen Xi.
The senior brother was still digging. This time he took out a small porcelain bottle from his arms. "By the way, there is also this. Three 'Turtle Breath Pills', after taking them, there is no breath, like a dead person. It is necessary to pretend to be dead..."
"That's enough." Luo Ling finally couldn't help it.
She stood up, walked to Chen Xi, raised her hand and slapped him on the back of the head. It wasn't hard, but it was loud.
"Are you going to f*cking refine weapons or be a rat?" Luo Ling glared at him, "As a meeting gift, I gave you Law Treasure as an escape gift, one after another, and it's endless?"
Chen Xi shrank his neck and whispered, "You can only refine weapons while you are alive..."
Wu Zhen looked on with a complicated expression. He turned to look at Luo Ling, with obvious doubts in his eyes: Did you teach this?
Luo Ling received the look and her face turned darker. She took a deep breath and said to Qin Tiexin, "Just keep the things. Although it's a little timid, it's useful."
Qin Tiexin nodded and put everything into Storage Bag.
Seeing that he had put it away, Chen Xi breathed a sigh of relief, and that gentle smile appeared on his face again, "Junior brother, if you need anything in the future, feel free to contact me. Although I am not as good as Master in refining weapons, I still have some experience in life-saving and jade and miscellaneous refining."
"Jade and miscellaneous items?" Qin Tiexin asked.