Blood Circulation Complete, Northern Border Latent Dragon Ranking

"Now that my lifespan is plentiful, I'll try deducing the Vajra Body to bolster my foundation."

Luo Chen sat cross-legged on his bed, his gaze shifting slightly.

[Consuming lifespan to begin deducing Vajra Body]

[Year One: You trained your body through wind and rain without fail, accumulating a little experience in external body cultivation...]

[Year Ten: Your qi and blood coursed through your entire body along a special route. Ancient bronze light bloomed across your body. Vajra Body had been initiated!]

[Year Twenty: Your qi and blood surged dramatically. Your strength, speed, and defense increased greatly. Vajra Body had reached Minor Accomplishment!]

...Luo Chen's tightly shut eyes gradually furrowed.

At this rate, something was wrong!

The consumption required by this Vajra Body was beyond Luo Chen's expectations.

Twenty years of lifespan, and it had only barely reached Minor Accomplishment.

Everyone knew that cultivation techniques and martial skills grew harder and harder the further one progressed.

"Damn it!" He had to at least reach Great Accomplishment before stopping.

Gritting his teeth, Luo Chen's lifespan began to drain rapidly once more.

[Year Thirty: Your foundation increased by another fifty percent. Your sinews and bones strengthened, and your qi and blood surged dramatically. Vajra Body had reached Great Accomplishment!]

[Year Thirty-Five: Your strength improved slightly...]

[Year Forty-Five: Your strength improved slightly...]

[Year Fifty: A blessing came to your heart. Your qi and blood broke through its barrier! Vajra Body had reached Perfection!]

[Lifespan: 16/130.]

Crack!

The bed beneath him exploded instantly.

Waves of savage, violent aura, as tyrannical as primordial ferocious beasts, rose from Luo Chen's body.

His qi and blood flowed like a dragon through his body, piercing the eight extraordinary meridians and converging into his Dantian Sea of Suffering.

The muscles all over his body swelled piece by piece. Thick tendons coiled over and beneath them, hideous and terrifying.

Luo Chen's strength, which had already reached the peak of Three Refinements, was instantly forced open by this surge of qi and blood, allowing him to step into the Blood Circulation Realm.

But it was not over yet. As streams of qi and blood circulated through his body, his Blood Circulation Realm began advancing rapidly.

Minor Accomplishment in Blood Circulation, Great Accomplishment in Blood Circulation, Perfection in Blood Circulation!

His qi and blood burned like a furnace, and his skin turned crimson as blood.

After a long while, Luo Chen opened his eyes and suppressed the restless qi and blood within him with all his strength.

The rapidly bulging muscle lines on his body began to contract, becoming lean and refined.

"I was right to choose the Vajra Body. The increase in qi and blood it granted upon reaching Perfection alone let me enter Blood Circulation Perfection."

The rise in realm was merely a byproduct.

Feeling the terrifying power contained within his body, Luo Chen revealed a cruel smile.

"Skin Tempering Demon, you'd better be a little stronger!"

That Demonic Beast had dispatched several clones to hunt him down. The closest it had come was when he had killed Xu Shan and refined the Skin Puppet.

The fact that the Skin Tempering Demon had not come personally at the time showed that it was not particularly strong.

At the very least, it would not exceed a single realm.

Afraid of exposing itself, it had only sent clones.

Looking at the bed beneath him, shattered by the aura of his breakthrough, helplessness flickered in his eyes.

He went to the desk to make do for the night.

He would clean up in the morning.

The night passed without incident.

The next morning.

After his morning training, Luo Chen enjoyed a rare moment of leisure.

He sat in the courtyard, toying with the Black Jar in his hand.

"Martial artists' blood contains tremendous qi and blood power. Even ordinary Gu worms love to eat it!"

Luo Chen squeezed out five drops of blood and let them drip into the Black Jar, quietly observing it.

"It'll still take some time to cultivate a Second Stage Gu worm!"

"Brother Pot, Brother Pot, come play with Yaoyao..."

A child's tender cries rang out from beyond the small courtyard.

"I've neglected this little girl somewhat over the past few months."

A trace of affection flashed through Luo Chen's eyes.

After hiding the Black Jar in his room, he picked up Little One as she came running over.

The weather was freezing now. Little One wore a snow-white padded coat, her little face flushed red.

Uncle Liu followed behind her. Seeing the scene in the courtyard, his heart filled with comfort.

The Family was happy and harmonious, making him feel more and more that his decision to leave the Demon Suppression Bureau had been the right one.

Yet as he watched Luo Chen grow increasingly mature, worry inevitably appeared in his eyes.

His hand gently brushed over his empty sleeve, his eyes filled with desolation.

The matter of the Skin Tempering Demon had also become a thorn in his heart.

What he did not know was that Luo Chen had already surpassed the realm he had spent decades attaining last night.

"Uncle Liu."

Carrying Yaoyao, Luo Chen walked out of the courtyard and called softly.

"Haha, come on. The year's end is almost here. Let's take a stroll through the streets."

Liu Xingsheng came back to his senses and said with a smile.

"Brother Pot, I want candied hawthorns and pine blossom cakes..."

"Alright... I'll buy them all for Yaoyao."

"The new Latent Dragon Ranking has been posted!"

"Don't miss it, passersby!"

"The Latent Dragon Ranking records the martial prodigies of the Northern Border under thirty... This month, Qingyuan City has a new prodigy on the list as well!"

As the year's end approached,

the streets became all the more bustling.

It seemed that the turmoil outside had no effect on the operation of this great city.

Luo Chen carried Yaoyao as he walked down the street with Liu Xingsheng, servants following behind them with the New Year goods they had bought.

"Get me a copy of the Latent Dragon Ranking."

Liu Xingsheng beckoned, and an attendant carrying a stack of papers hurried over, bowing at the waist.

"Certainly, sir. Ten copper coins."

The attendant's smile grew broader. He respectfully pulled a ranking list from his robes, accepted the coins from the servant, and only then departed.

Luo Chen looked over curiously.

Liu Xingsheng unfolded the Latent Dragon Ranking and explained it to Luo Chen.

"This Latent Dragon Ranking is released by King Zhenbei's Mansion. It records martial prodigies under thirty in the Northern Border and ranks them according to their strength, battle records, and various other factors."

"King Zhenbei's Mansion is immensely powerful, and the credibility of its rankings is extremely high. They can be used as a reference."

Luo Chen nodded and looked toward the top of the list.

Wu Tianqiong—Thirty years old, first on the Latent Dragon Ranking, Divine Intent Realm. Once used a martial divine ability to slay a Divine Intent Realm Demonic Beast in a single strike...

Zhuge Xing—Twenty-nine years old, second on the Latent Dragon Ranking, Divine Intent Realm. One month ago, pursued a Great Accomplishment of Divine Intent martial artist for a thousand miles and killed him in three moves...

Shangguan Changyue—Twenty-nine years old, third on the Latent Dragon Ranking, Divine Intent Realm. Chief Director of Qingyuan City's Demon Suppression Bureau, inheritor of Cold Moon Palace...

"Haha, that boy finally made it onto the ranking!"

Liu Xingsheng's gaze stopped at the final row of the list, and he burst into laughter.

"This Wang Tianhao comes from Qingyuan City's Wang Family. He is the prodigy the Wang Family has poured all its efforts into cultivating in this generation, and it is also the Lineage your Aunt was born into."

"You can get to know each other when the opportunity arises."

Drawn in, Luo Chen looked toward the ninetieth place on the ranking.

Wang Tianhao—Twenty-five years old. Broke through to the Mysterious Aperture Realm one month ago. Cultivates superior martial arts. Once killed a Blood Circulation clone of a Skin Tempering Demon...

Luo Chen's eyelid twitched. Was this Skin Tempering Demon the same one that had set its sights on me?

After pondering it briefly, he understood.

They were certainly the same creature. He and Wang Tianhao were both in Qingyuan City...

"The Northern Border's prodigies are like crucian carp crossing a river. They cannot be underestimated!"

There was no need to question the value of this Latent Dragon Ranking.

Breaking through to the Mysterious Aperture Realm at twenty-five could only place one at the very bottom.

The complacency born from the rapid advance of his strength gradually faded, replaced by a hint of gravity.

"Chen'er, you needn't be discouraged. They are so much older than you, and they all have powers supporting them. When you reach their age, you will certainly be able to make the ranking as well."

"To behold the bearing of the prodigies!"

If you think this book is good, please remember to add it to your bookshelf so you do not lose it next time.